Lost At Sea
by SirRavenMacbeth
Summary: What if Cristina takes her issue with Lincoln a bit too far and Lincoln gets upset at her? What if what she did made the other students angry at her? What if Cristina starts to fell bad about the way she has been treating Lincoln? What if someone did something to Lincoln and Cristina gets blamed for it? How will Lincoln's sisters react?
1. Chapter 1

Lincoln let out a sigh. He was tired, but that was expected for the first day of school. He was standing outside, waiting for the bus with Lynn. He really wasn't looking forward to going to middle school. Most of his friends weren't even going to be there.

Liam and Zack were held back and they were too embarrassed to even talk to Lincoln anymore. Clyde had moved during the summer… That was still really hard to think about. Stella was still there, they had grown a lot closer as friends. Rusty was… Rusty. They were still friends, but he had started to hang with 'the cool kids' in order to 'meet chicks' as Rusty would put it. Not really something Lincoln was interested in doing. Sure he wanted a girlfriend, but he had more important things to do.

Mostly he just wanted to get through the year and maybe make a few more friends.

"Hey Stincoln, you ready for this year?" Lincoln turned to look at his sister. She was far more… pumped, that he was. She couldn't even hold still for five minutes. "Yeah, you know it." Lynn frowned, looking him over. "Come on Linc, I know you don't like school and I know you are still upset about all of your friends abandoning you, but it's not going to be that bad."

Lincoln gave her a blank look before turning away. "Easy for you to say. You have more than one friend. I only have Stella… Maybe Rusty if he stops his stupid girl conquest that will go nowhere." Lynn sighed, patting his back. "Don't worry about it Lincoln. This is middle school. I'm sure people will see how great you are and will be begging you to be their friends."

Lincoln snorted, seeing the bus come. "I doubt that, but I wouldn't mind making another friend or two." Lynn turned Lincoln to look at her, her face serious. "Come on Linc, it's really not going to be that bad and if you need more friends… Well, you can always bring Stella and come and sit with me at lunch. I know it's not ideal, but I like to think we are friends."

Lincoln smiled and they separated. "Thanks Lynn… That sounds nice." Lynn nodded, returning the smile. "Of course, now let's go before the bus leaves us here." Lincoln nodded, adjusting his bag before following Lynn into the bus.

It wasn't crowded, but there were a lot more kids than Lincoln expected. Apparently a few new kids had moved into the neighborhood.

Lincoln followed Lynn to the back of the bus. A head shot out of the side of a seat, smiling at them "Hey guys! Come on Linc, you can sit with me if you want." Lincoln smiled, sitting down. Lynn walked by him, giving him a smile before sitting in the seat diagonal to him, sitting with her best friend, Margo.

Lincoln looked at his friend, relaxing a bit. "Hey Stella, how are you doing?" Stella let out a tired sigh. "Okay I guess. It's hard without the others to talk to… err… not that I'm saying I'm tired of talking to you, it's just… You know."

Lincoln nodded, understanding. "Don't worry, I get it. I knew things were going to start changing in middle school… But I didn't think they were going to be changing this much." Stella nodded, letting out a sigh. "Me neither… Have you heard from Liam or Zack yet?"

Lincoln shook his head and Stella sagged a bit. "No… What about Rusty?" Stella tensed a little. "Yeah… I went to ask him to snap out of this stupid 'game' he is playing and start being our friend again. He just laughed at me and asked me out. I told him no, but he seemed offended by it. I don't know why, It's not even the first time I've rejected him."

Lincoln sighed, placing a hand on Stella's shoulder. "I'm sorry to hear that. I don't see what he sees in those jerk friends of his. Hopefully he will see we are his true friends before it's too late." Stella nodded, sitting up a bit. "Yeah, well at least we are still friends. I would hate to be alone getting into Middle school. You definitely make moving here nice."

Lincoln smiled, shyly rubbing his neck. "Well, everyone needs a friend. I'm more than happy to be yours." Stella smiled back. "Nice to know some things never change or in this case, some people."

Lincoln nodded, looking out the window as the bus came to a stop. "Don't worry Stella, I never really change much." Stella nodded, looking with Lincoln as Girl Jordan walked onto the bus, headed towards them. "I don't know Linc, you seem a bit more fit this year."

Lincoln looked at Stella, raising a brow. "What do you mean?" Stella poked his arm. "You have a bit more muscle. You look less like a bean pole and a lot more… lean. I think practicing with your sister if finally doing something for you, that and I'm sure running around trying to keep your sisters from blowing up the house helps."

Lincoln looked at his arms, poking them. "If you say so… I never really noticed." Stella snorted. "Like I said, glad to know you don't change much."

"Hey Lincoln. Hey Stella. How is it going?"

Lincoln and Stella turned to look at Girl Jordan, both a bit surprised. One, because she was sitting next to them and two, because she looked exhausted. Lincoln raised a brow. "Hey Girl Jordan, are you okay? You look exhausted." She nodded, scratching her neck. "Yeah… I just haven't been having a very good summer. Boy Jordan has been harassing me since last month. Apparently he thinks because we have the same name, we should be dating. That guy isn't my type and he is a bit of a jerk. Then yesterday I had a doctor's appointment and my doctor misdiagnosed me. It was pretty scary."

Lincoln frowned. "What do you mean? What did he make you think you had?" Girl Jordan sighed, looking a bit uncomfortable. "He… err… thought I had a tumor in my head." Lincoln's eyes widened and Stella's mouth dropped.

Girl Jordan nodded, letting out a yawn. "He had me there for over ten hours doing tests, only to find out that the results belonged to someone else. After being terrified for most of the day, it was a relief to know I wasn't going to die, but I was really mad at the doctor. My dad even punched him in the face… I'm just glad to be going to school, if I had to stay home, I would have gone insane."

Lincoln leaned forward, surprising not only himself, but Girl Jordan as well. "Well, I'm very glad you are physically fine. I know we aren't the best of friends, but I really would be sad if you were sick." Girl Jordan looked at him in shock before relaxing and hugging him back, placing her hand against his. "Wow Linc… You have no idea how much that means to me or how much I really needed this hug."

Lincoln continued the hug for a few moments longer before pulling away and Lynn leaned over the seat. "Lincoln's hugs always makes things better. No one really knows why. It's a bit of a mystery." Girl Jordan looked at Lynn, watching as she slowly sank below the seat. She turned to Lincoln, raising a brow. "I'll assume that was another one of your sisters?"

Lincoln nodded, moving to sit back in his seat. "Yeah, that is Lynn. She is my directly older sister. She is the only one to be in middle school with me." Girl Jordan nodded. "I see… Though, she is right… Your hug did make me feel a lot better."

Lincoln gave her a smile. "Glad to have helped."

"Oh for heaven's sake, why do you have to be here?"

Lincoln stiffened and Girl Jordan and Stella looked at the person sitting in the seat in front of Girl Jordan. Stella looked at the girl in confusion, but Girl Jordan looked at her in shock. Lincoln slowly turned his head, looking at the one person who hated him most. "Cristina…"

"Don't look at me perv."

Lincoln sighed, looking at his feet. "I'm not a perv and I'm sorry that I made you uncomfortable, but don't you think it's a bit ridiculous to still be mad? I mean, it was over a year ago, not to mention, you were the one who chose to sit here."

"Pft… As if I would sit this close to you by choice. All the other seats are taken. Now stop talking to me."

Lincoln sighed, his eye twitching.

"Why do you have to be such a jerk to him? He didn't even do anything wrong. He had a crush on you, big deal. What is so bad about that? Have you never had a crush before? Is Lincoln that repulsive to you that you embarrass him and bully him in front of everyone?"

Lincoln darted his eyes to Girl Jordan in surprise.

"Humph, of course I have had a crush before, but I don't post videos of me kissing pictures of them and I don't bully him. I just don't like him. I didn't have the same feelings, heck, I didn't even know he existed before the video went up."

Lincoln frowned and Stella leaned over, rubbing his back. "If you have such a problem with him, then why do you keep talking about him? You are upsetting him."

"Whatever, I'm surprised anyone would be friends with him, no wonder Clyde moved and the others stopped hanging out with him. They were probably sick of seeing his ugly face, who would ever date such a loser…"

The bus grew quiet and everyone turned to look at Cristina in shock. "I'm… I'm sorry, I didn't mean…"

"Just shut your mouth. If you ever talk to my brother like that again, I will use you for batting pra…" Lynn cut off as Lincoln grabbed her arm and she looked at him. He had a blank expression, but everyone could clearly see the tears threatening his eyes. "Stop… please, go sit back down. I'm tired of people fighting and yelling all the time. I get it, Cristina hates me and nothing will change that. I'm not her type, I get that."

Lincoln looked at Cristina, a tear breaking down his cheek. "I am sorry I embarrassed you. I should have thought about how that video would have affected you… I make a lot of mistakes, but I try to make up for them… I see this is one of those mistakes that I can't do anything about… I'm sorry we couldn't have just been friends… I'll make sure to stay away from you… I don't want to make you more uncomfortable…"

Cristina opened her mouth to reply, but one look from Lynn, Girl Jordan and Stella shut her up. She just turned and faced the window. Lincoln let out a shaky sigh, placing his head against the back of the seat in front of him. Lynn patted his back before sighing. "Are you sure you just want to drop this?"

Lincoln nodded. "Yeah… It's not worth the hassle. I'm not happy with Cristina… But I don't want her to get hurt." Lynn sigh, leaning down to give him a quick hug. "I'm proud of you." With that, Lynn stood and went back to her seat.

Lincoln felt the spot next to him shift as someone sat with him and he felt both them and Stella lean over to hug him. Lincoln sighed, enjoying the hugs.

"Are you okay Lincoln?" Lincoln turned his head, looking at Girl Jordan. He nodded, still fighting his tears. "Yeah…."

Stella began to rub his back. "You are a terrible liar Linc… It's okay to be upset. She shouldn't have said those things." Lincoln sighed, letting his tears run free. "You're right… I'm not okay… I knew she didn't like me… but I didn't know she hated me that much… I really miss Clyde and the others… I fell like my world is falling apart…"

Girl Jordan sighed, turning Lincoln's head to look at her. "You know I'm your friend right? I know you said earlier that we aren't the closest of friends… But I don't agree. You have been there for me many times… Just like a while ago… If Cristina can't see what a great guy you are, than that is her fault. Just know, we are here for you."

Lincoln sighed, sitting up to hug them both back. "Thanks… I'm glad you are both my friends…"

* * *

**Thanks for reading my new story. This is something I came up with out of the blue and I hope you liked it. Do tell me what you think of it. It is very different to my other story and I just wanted to try something new. As always, have a good day.**


	2. Chapter 2

Cristina wasn't having a very good day. People were giving her mixed looks. A few, like Chandler, Boy Jordan, Paige and surprisingly, Rusty. Along with a few others, told her that she was in the right, telling her she should have told him off ages ago… But others, as in most of the others, just spent the day telling her off. Saying that what she had said was totally uncalled for and that she was being a bully to Lincoln. Even her best friend, Cookie, was giving her crap. And Cookie didn't like Lincoln at all… or at least that is what she told everyone.

Cristina was tired of it; it was as if they thought she didn't know that what she had said wasn't right. She didn't even know what she had said until afterwards. It was like every time she saw that jerk, she would just get angry again. She really didn't mean most of it. She didn't know where the thing about his old friends came from, that really surprised her.

She still didn't even like him… she just didn't mean to make him cry.

"Ouph…"

Cristina fell backwards, her butt hitting the floor, hard. She sat up, rubbing her sore tail bone before looking at what she hit. "Oh…" It was Rusty. She had seen a lot of him today. If she thought Lincoln was a bit of a perv… Well, this guy was such a sleaze bag that he made Lincoln look like a gentle man.

"Oh, sorry Cristina..." Rusty was looking at her, but low.

Cristina frowned, following his gaze. Her face heated up when she noticed her skirt had rode up her legs and was just barely covering her. She quickly fixed it and hopped to her feet, kicking his shin. "Perv."

Rusty grabbed at his shin, glaring at her. "Geez, sorry Cris… Hey let me make it up to you." Cristina frowned, backing away. "I don't think so. I don't want to go out with you at all." Rusty shook his head, looking annoyed. "That isn't what I meant… you aren't my type anyway. It's about Lincoln."

Cristina was about to turn away, but froze, giving him a wary look. "What about him?" Rusty gave her a grin."You don't like him right?" Cristina slowly nodded, getting a weird feeling. "No, not at all… Why?" Rusty's grin grew. "Neither do we…"

Cristina's brows furrowed and she took a step back. "What do you mean, We?" Rusty stepped back to the door, opening it, keeping his grin. "I told you we would find her here."

Cristina frowned when Paige and Boy Jordan came out of the room, standing in the hall with Rusty. They all gave her mildly creepy grins, making her even more uncomfortable. "Rusty… What is going on?"

Rusty gave her a look that made her skin crawl. "We don't like him either. He is always getting in the way and he thinks he is better than everyone." Boy Jordan nodded, his grin turning to a frown. "Because of him, Girl Jordan won't date me. She won't stop hanging onto him because she feels sorry for him… though, I suppose that is mainly your fault, but I'm willing to forget it if you help us."

Paige stepped forward, rolling her eyes. "Pathetic isn't he? I have a much greater reason to hate him. It's actually much like yours, that is, Lincoln had a crush on me. He started stalking me and leaving creepy notes for me. When I found out it was him, I kicked him square in the nuts. It was the most satisfying thing I have ever done. The only problem is, he keeps watching me, it's creepy… damn perv…"

Cristina sort of understood that last one. If Lincoln was stalking her, than it would make sense for her to be angry. She wasn't sure what Rusty had against Lincoln and Boy Jordan was kind of creepy… Though… she didn't really want to do anything to make Lincoln cry again… But she also didn't want to have him start stalking her too… though, he did say he wouldn't bother her again… But just in case, it wouldn't hurt to hear them out.

"Um… What do you have planned?"

They grinned and Rusty stepped forward a little. "Simple, revenge and nothing more." Cristina raised a brow. "What do you mean?" Rusty took another step forward, making Cristina step back. "Well, we are going to need to do something to make him know not to mess with us again. Something that will make him step into line… Something that will ruin him."

Cristina didn't like the sound of that. She took another step back, felling the wall against her back. "I don't know guys… I don't want him to get hurt. He already thinks I'm a bully… I'm going to have to pass on this… I don't think I really hate him as much as you guys…"

Rusty frowned, shaking his head. He sighed and looked at his friends. "Looks like we will have to do this the hard way." They nodded, heading for Cristina. She tried to run off, but Rusty grabbed her arm. "We already have this whole thing set up… the only thing we don't have… is you. Someone to take the fall. I'm sure you will understand why we need to do this."

Cristina shook her head, pulling her arm away. "No, I don't. You people are crazy." She tried to run again, but this time Paige grabbed her other arm and Boy Jordan grabbed her shoulders. "Lincoln is in our way and now, so are you."

Paige nodded. "This could have been so much easier if you just agreed. I suppose we just need to keep you here until the next period. I wonder what people will think when you don't show for class? Hmm… Maybe we should tell you what we did, just to pass the time, what do you think guys?"

Rusty nodded, placing his hand on Cristina's face. "Sure… Man, I don't see what Lincoln saw in you… Funny, Lincoln really did like you. I bet you don't even know why he posted that video, do you? It had nothing to do with you… it was so his sisters would forgive him for the one he posted about them. You think you were embarrassed? Imagine having the entire school laughing at you, just so your family would forgive you. You are a piece of trash. The best part is the fact that Lincoln doesn't even hold it against you. He would have been happy to have just been friends, but instead of telling him no, you spat in his face, breaking his oh so poor little heart. He was really devastated… Anyway, you bore me. You two can explain what we are going to do to Lincoln… it's going to be exciting."

Cristina fought as hard as she could. She hadn't realized that she had hurt Lincoln so much. She really was a piece of trash… She needed to find Lincoln and warn him… that is, if he would listen.

Rusty let go of her face and gave it a small slap before moving away, looking at his stupid pocket watch. Cristina's face was again grabbed, this time by Paige. "It really is going to be perfect. This next period, Lincoln is going to go to his locker. He is going to open it and various chemicals are going to destroy everything in it. The ceiling panel over his head will slide open once the locker has been opened and pig's blood will dump on him. Once the warning bell rings, all of his school records will be destroyed and a video of Lincoln's 'accident' will be posted on line. We have spent the last two weeks setting up various accounts on Youtube, just so we can post some… not so nice things about it. I also may have sent a nice little package in the mail to Lincoln's house. It's a nice little glitter bomb. Whatever room they open it in, will be ruined. Not to mention the various hate letters that we sent out. All addressed to Lincoln. They should arrive today. Sounds like that should be enough… for now. Who knows, maybe Lincoln will drop out of school. Would make my day."

Cristina was horrified. "What the hell is wrong with you? Lincoln doesn't deserve any of that. He did nothing this bad and you all want to destroy him. What if Lincoln gets hurt? What if… Mmm…"

Cristina's eyes widened as Paige cut her off, pressing her lips to her's. Boy Jordan let out a whistle and Rusty burst out laughing, pulling out his phone to video it. Cristina tried to pull her head away, but Paige head her head still, making Cristina fight harder.

"RING…"

Paige pulled away, licking her lips. "Mmmm… Cherry… Well, sorry to leave you like this. I would love to continue, but duty calls. We have just enough time to get to see Lincoln's demise. Too bad you have to take the fall… Rusty is wrong, I can see exactly what Lincoln saw in you. Anyway, bye-bye."

Cristina shuddered as Paige pulled away, winking. Boy Jordan following closely, letting Cristina slid to the floor. Rusty closed out of his video app and pocketed his phone. Paige gave him an annoyed look, shaking her head. "You are such a perv… Just make sure to send me a copy of that video, I'm going to want to remember that kiss."

Cristina wiped her mouth, watching angrily as they took off, heading down the hall. She felt used and she could still taste Paige's mouth. She didn't like this. It wasn't far, she didn't want any of this. Lincoln was screwed and… LINCOLN!

Cristina sprang to her feet, pausing just long enough to steady herself and she took off. Maybe if she ran fast enough, she could warm him. What an unexpected turn of events… She didn't like Lincoln and yet, here she was, trying to stop this mess before it ruined him. This wasn't far, not for him and not for her. She wanted nothing to do with this and now, if she didn't get to Lincoln in time, she would get blamed for this whole thing.

She spotted Paige and the others turning down a hall and she began to run faster, ignoring the burning pain in her lugs. She wasn't going to let this happen. Lincoln didn't deserve this… She could hear students mulling about in the halls, making her nervous. "Come on… Almost there…"

She didn't know where Lincoln's locker was, but it couldn't be that far. She didn't even have to get there before the others, she just had to get there before Lincoln could open it. She could explain what was going on and they could put this whole mess behind them.

Cristina turned a corner, seeing rows of lockers. She began to dodge students, looking around for Lincoln. She spotted Girl Jordan about ten feet away and made her way towards her, hoping she could tell her where he was. "Girl Jordan!"

Girl Jordan turned, looking at her. Her eyes filled with anger and she turned away. "Wait, I need your help. Where is Lincoln?" Girl Jordan turned, facing her. She was even angrier. "Why? So you can bully him some more? I think you need to leave him alone. He already promised to leave you alone, so why can't you just leave…"

"BANG… AHHHHHHH… THUD…"

Girl Jordan cut off, turning away, confusion filling her eyes and Cristina's heart skipped several beats. Her stomached started to painfully churn as the scent of blood filled her nose and she started down the hall, moving with Girl Jordan. "Oh god… Please no…"

Girl Jordan gave her a confused look before turning, pushing through the crowd. A few people started laughing, but most stayed dead quiet. Girl Jordan and Cristina burst through the crowd, the scent of blood overwhelming.

Cristina nearly threw up due to what she saw before her and Girl Jordan gasped, covering her mouth. Before them, covered head to toe with blood, was Lincoln…"

* * *

**Thank you for reading. As always, have a good one. ^_^**


	3. Chapter 3

Lincoln stared at his locker. His brain was having difficulty processing what had happened. The smell of blood was over powering and he felt sticky. Everything in his locker was ruined… His bag, his books, his school laptop… and he barely noticed.

He looked down, looking at his hands. They were stained red with blood and he felt tears welling in his eyes. He didn't know if it was because of the blood dripping into his eyes or the smell… or perhaps the fact that people were laughing at him or just staring at him.

He tried to wipe the blood from his hands, but only felt blood on his shirt. He blinked, trying to stop his tears, but they just started to grow heavier. He had never felt so embarrassed or humiliated in his life.

"LINCOLN!"

Lincoln blinked, hearing several familiar voices. "I'm okay." Lincoln mentally cringed as his voice faltered and blood filled his mouth. It was luke warm and tasted fowl, making him cough. Lincoln heard footstep and he turned, slipping in the blood and hitting the ground hard.

The laughter grew louder and more students joined in.

"STOP LAUGHING AT HIM OR I WILL BREAK ALL OF YOUR LEGS."

The laughter stopped and Lincoln could hear several sets of footsteps. He looked up to see Lynn's face coming near him. She had a mix of fury and agony plastered across her face and when she made eye contact with him, he could see sadness in her eyes. Lincoln also saw Girl Jordan and Stella heading for him and much to his surprise, Cristina.

Lynn got to Lincoln first. She dropped to her knees, ignoring the blood soaking into her clothes. "Oh god… Linc…" Lincoln coughed up a bit of the blood, a small amount spraying her face. She looked up as Girl Jordan and Stella got to him and looked around. "WHO DID THIS? TELL ME NOW!"

Students started to look around each other, looking uncomfortable.

"IT WAS PROBABLY CRISTINA. AFTER WHAT SHE SAID THIS MORNING, WOULD YOU REALLY BE SURPRISED?"

Everyone's head turned to look at Cristina. When Lincoln made eye contact with her, he could see horror in her eyes. "Wow, just give me a second to explain. It wasn't me, it was…"

"STOP LYING YOU COW! I SAW YOU HANGING AROUND HIS LOCKER ALL LAST PERIOD. I BET YOU HATE HIM, DON'T YOU?"

Cristina shook her head, her eyes filling with tears. "NO, I don't hate him. I swear it wasn't me. Sure I didn't like him, but he doesn't de…"

"SHUT UP YOU BITCH. WHAT IF LINCOLN IS HURT? YOU SAY YOU DON'T HATE HIM, YET TODAY YOU SAID JUST THAT."

Cristina desperately shook her head and began towards Lincoln again. "No, I don't hate him, just let me explain what really happened, I know who it was."

Lynn stood, turning to glare at her. Cristina froze. "He told you he wouldn't go near you… He just wanted to make you happy… Why wasn't that enough? What did he do to deserve this?" Cristina shook her head. "But I didn't…"

"LEAVE. If I ever see you come near my brother again, I will make you feel pain unlike anything you could imagine." Cristina opened her mouth to plead, but Stella and Girl Jordan turned to look at her with Lynn.

"LEAVE!"

Cristina put her head down, tears flowing from her face. She turned and ran, pushing through the crowd. "IT WASN'T ME. I WOULD NEVER HAVE HURT HIM."

Everyone turned back to Lincoln. He was trying to wipe blood from his eyes, but with how much blood was on him, it wasn't helping. He sat up and brought his knees to his chest, hugging them. "I want to go home…"

Lynn nodded, going in to hug him, ignoring the horrid smell and not caring that it was soaking into her shirt or that it was getting all over her face. "Okay… I'll call Lori." Lincoln nodded, pressing his head into her chest. "Why did she do this?" Lynn shook her head, wiping blood from his face. "I don't know Linc… I don't know…"

* * *

Lori sighed, plopping on her bed. She was tired. She had just gotten home from looking at a few colleges with Bobby. It was nice to see him, but he had to go back to work. She was getting more nervous about leaving home and she wasn't really sure if she was ready. She really wanted to go to college and she really, really wanted to be with Bobby for the rest of her life… but she didn't want to leave her family. She still had so much to tell them and she wanted to spend more time with them. It was all happening so fast.

Lori closed her eyes, trying to relax her mind. She was going to go crazy if she didn't calm herself down. Adulting was literally the worst.

"BZZT"

Lori sighed, putting her phone on her night stand. "Sorry Bobby, I'm too tired for talking…"

"BZZT BZZT…"

Lori sat up, picking up her phone. "Damn it Bobby, what do you want?" She looked at her phone, confused. "Lynn?"

Lori opened her phone, looking at the texts.

"Lori something horrible happened at school, please pick me and Lincoln up. Bring clothes for us."

"Lori please hurry, Lincoln needs to get out of here."

"Lori I swear to god, if you don't answer me, I will kill you. Lincoln needs you."

Lori jumped from her bed, her heart pounding. She quickly called her, slipping on her shoes and heading for the hall. "Hello? Lori, you have to come, please grab a change of clothes. Everything is going horribly wrong. Lincoln is drenched in blood and everything is going wrong…"

Lori cut her off. "WHAT? WHAT HAPPENED? IS HE ALRIGHT? HOW DID HE GET HURT?" Lori dashed into Lynn and Lucy's room, grabbing a change of clothes as Lynn replied. "NO! Lincoln isn't hurt, it was a horrible prank. He opened his locker and blood poured onto his head from the ceiling. Everything in his locker was destroyed by a bunch of really dangerous chemicals… Lori, Lincoln is so upset about this whole thing… It was Cristina."

Lori froze, half into the hall. "Cristina? The girl who broke his heart? Why did she do this, I thought she wasn't even in Lincoln's class anymore? Are you certain it was her?"

"Come on Lori, just hurry up and get here, we can talk about what is going on after we get home. Lincoln is crying for fucks sake."

Lori snapped out of it, dashing for Lincoln's room. "Right, I'll be there in a few minutes…" Lori hung up, putting her phone into her pocket. She quickly grabbed Lincoln's clothes, throwing them and Lynn's on his bed while she looked around for a back pack.

She found one under his bed and emptied it, quickly stacking old school work on the floor before rapidly stuffing the clothes into it. She zipped up the bag and headed out of the room. She paused, trying to think about what else they might need. She was sure the school had soap and towels for the showers and pool…

Lori shook her head and headed down the stairs. Once Lincoln was clean enough to come home, he could take as long a bath or shower as he liked. She passed though the living room and dashed out of the door, pulling the van keys from her pocket. She climbed into the van, tossing the bag into the passenger's seat and started the van, taking off.

"Don't worry Lincy, I'm coming. Everything is going to be just fine…"

Lynn's leg was rapidly shaking as she sat with Lincoln, washing the blood from his face. She felt sick and not just from the stench of the blood. His eyes hadn't stopped watering since she first saw him and she was certain it wasn't just from the blood. He wore a blank expression, but his eyes were filled with hurt. He just looked miserable.

While she worked on his face, two of Lincoln's friends had started on his arms and chest. Despite their current position, Lynn was very happy to know Lincoln had suck amazing friends. She was going to have to find a way to make it up to them, she owed them big time.

Lynn felt Lincoln's breath as he sighed and she bit her lip. He hadn't even uttered a single word in over an hour and it was bothering her. She hated this so much, she wanted to start crying and it wasn't even her that was pranked. This whole mess wasn't far for him. It seemed that no matter how much they cleaned him, his skin just stayed red… and his hair… That in its self was heartbreaking. It was dyed blood red and she swore to god they would get it out, even if Lynn had to go out a buy white hair dye. Lincoln didn't deserve this…

Lynn was starting to get angry again. That stupid jerk Cristina was going to pay for this. Lincoln promised to respect her, but she didn't have the decency to respect him. Not only did she make him cry that morning, but now she simply broke him. Honestly, Lynn was terrified about how this whole mess was going to affect him. She knew Lincoln had a super thick skin and all, but this? This was too much for anyone.

She turned to rinse the washing rag, turning the water bloody yet again. She pulled it back out, ringing the excess water from it. She took a look over Lincoln's face. He was looking way cleaner, but he really needed a shower. She hoped that Lori would be here soon. Once they got most of the blood off of him, he could take a quick shower here and after, when they got home, Lincoln would need a much more heavy cleaning.

Lynn looked over the rest of Lincoln. His torso and arms were mostly washed off, just having a blood dyed residue on his skin. Stella and Girl Jordan were still hard at work, gently washing him and Lynn could see in their faces, that they were just as upset as her. Lincoln was really lucky to have such great friends. They just kept at their task, ignoring the smell and the stains on the clothing. They were all going to need showers immediately after they were done. Luckily, Stella and Girl Jordan still had their gym clothes to wear and they decided to take a shower after Lincoln was done.

That is one thing that the school made a little difficult on them. They wanted to use the boys' shower because it would have made Lincoln more comfortable, but because they were girls, the principal didn't let them. They had barely managed to convince him to let them help clean off Lincoln in general. At first he refused, but Lynn threatened to quit all of her sports teams, which would have drastically lowered funding for the school's sports teams.

After agreeing to let them do what they wanted with Lincoln, he let them use the girls' showers as long as they didn't go into the physical shower with him. Not that they would have anyway… Lynn was beginning to hate that guy. It was like he blamed the whole thing on Lincoln and quite frankly, Lynn was pissed about it. But she had far more important things to worry about… Like Lincoln and Cristina.

While Lincoln is in taking his shower, Lynn was going to talk to students about her. The principal couldn't do anything to punish her due to lack of evidence, but he was certainly going to be keeping an eye on her. Though, she did get suspended for the rest of the week because of how she treated Lincoln this morning. Oddly, it was like Cristina was happy to be suspended, which confused everyone.

"KNOCK KNOCK…"

Lynn snapped out of her thoughts, turning her head to look at the door. "Yeah?" Lynn could hear someone panting on the other side, as if they had just ran to the door from across the school. "Lori, is that you?"

"Yeah, can I come in? The principal won't let me in unless I asked first."

Lynn sighed, getting even more annoyed with the principal. "Yeah, come in. Lincoln is only shirtless." Lynn and the other two girls watched as Lori walked in, holding Lincoln's back pack from last school year. She paused when she saw Lincoln, her eyes filling with horror. "Oh Lincy… What did she do to you?"

Lincoln's only response was a long and very tired sigh. Lynn looked at him, frowning. "Come on Linc, let's get your clothes and bring you to the shower… Are you going to want me or Lori to help you? It's not an issue if you need help."

Lincoln looked at her, wiping the drying tears from his face. He opened his mouth and Lynn thought he was going to speak for the first time in well over two hours, but her hopes were dashed as Lincoln closed his mouth, shaking his head.

Lynn nodded, feeling even more down. "Okay, if you change your mind, just call out, okay?" Lincoln nodded, taking a towel from Stella and his clothes from Lori. He stood and turned, heading into the showering room.

They watched the door close before turning to each other, frowning. Lori was the first to speak, looking mortified. "Please, someone please tell me what is literally happening. Did Cristina do this and where is she? Is Lincoln alright? He looks like he is in shock."

Lynn sighed, washing her hands in one of the sinks. "First of, we are mostly sure it was Cristina. She was bullying Lincoln this morning on the bus and people said that they saw her hanging around Lincoln's locker before this all happened. That seems like pretty good proof to me and if I ever see her so much as look at Lincoln again, I will break her."

Stella nodded, looking just as angry. "Yeah, and to answer your second question, Cristina was suspended until next week for the bullying she did this morning, though, they can't do anything about the locker and ceilings thing. There are no cameras in that part of the school, so we can't prove it, but everyone knows how much Cristina hates Lincoln. She even said so this morning straight to his face."

Girl Jordan nodded, looking towards the shower room as a shower started. "Yeah… As to answer your last question about whether Lincoln is alright… We don't know. Lincoln hasn't really talked at all since this whole mess started. Everyone saw what happened and so many of them were laughing. I have never seen Lincoln so embarrassed or humiliated before… I can't believe Cristina did this and after Lincoln told her that he would leave her alone? This was just cruel."

Lori nodded, looking very unhappy. "So… What is with this Cristina kid? I mean, I know Lincoln embarrassed her and all with that video he posted and I know she broke his heart, but what exactly did she do? Lincoln wasn't exactly very open about that whole thing, at least not with me."

Lynn nodded, looking at Girl Jordan. "Same here, I do know a little more that her from what I managed to squeeze out of Lincoln, but other than switching classes and avoiding him like the plague, I don't really know anything about her."

Girl Jordan sighed, rubbing her face. "There really isn't much more to tell. Lincoln posted that video to get you and his other sisters to forgive him and when Cristina saw the part with Lincoln kissing a picture of her, she got laughed at. She was apparently embarrassed enough to switch classes and she mostly avoided Lincoln."

"There were a few times that they would see each other in the hall and Cristina would mostly just give him the cold shoulder… Really, most of us thought that she was over reacting. I mean, it was just a damn kiss. Anyway, for a while they didn't see anything of each other and we kind of just forgot about it… That is until today, when Cristina sat in the seat in front of me."

"Lincoln and I were talking about something rather… personal just a few moments earlier and he had hugged me, making me fell a bit better. After, Lynn, Stella and I were talking about how Lincoln's hugs make people feel better and that was when Cristina sat in front of me. She started to get angry about Lincoln being there and he told her that she was the one that chose to sit there. She then went on to say…"

"KNOCK KNOCK…"

Girl Jordan paused her story and every one turned to look at the door in surprise as someone started to bang on it. Lori headed for it, the others following close behind. "I thought that dope of a principal said that he was closing off this room just for you girls and Lincoln?"

They all nodded and when Lori opened the door, their brows all raised. Lynn stepped forward, feeling a bit off. "Hello Principal Green, did you need something? Lincoln just got into the shower a little while ago."

His face was serious, making Lynn grow nervous. "I have come here to tell you something very important and this is a very serious matter. I tried to call your parents first, but I just got the messaging machines. A few minutes ago teachers were grading students work, when they realized that Lincoln wasn't in the records. This isn't abnormal and they called Janet in the main office to see if his records just hadn't been sent to them yet. Well… Janet looked through the records, as she had just seen his earlier this morning… But I'm afraid that they aren't there. Your brother's school records are gone, as in deleted. Now, this is a very serious crime and who ever deleted them will be punished severely. But until we can rebuild his records, Lincoln won't be able to return to school… I'm sorry, I tried to convince the school board, but it's the law."

They looked at him in horror, anger filling them. Lynn grit her teeth, clenching her fists. "This isn't fair, Lincoln doesn't deserve this. What is he going to do? He's going to be left behind… How long is this going to take?"

Principal Green sighed. "It depends on whether the records were just deleted… or if they were completely wiped from existence. If they were just deleted, then perhaps a week… but if they were completely wiped… well, I'm afraid that Lincoln will be out of school until they are rebuilt… which could take over a month. I'm sorry and I know this is unfair for Lincoln, but rest assured, when we catch who did this, they will be punished to the fullest existent I can…"

**Thank you for reading chapter three. A quick thank you to RawToonage press for helping me with the title. I find it to be rather fitting for how both Lincoln and Cristina feel.**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter, please feel free to leave a review and tell me what you think. And as always, have a good one. ^_^**


	4. Chapter 4

Cristina was frustrated and upset. Her day had been complete and utter hell. She was already feeling like crap because of what she had said to Lincoln earlier that day, but with everyone having blamed her for what happened to Lincoln just a few short hours ago… Well, she didn't know how to feel.

She was tired of the nasty comments on her social media page and she couldn't believe that the principal had suspended her. He claimed it was for what she had said to Lincoln this morning, but she and everyone else knew it was because of the prank Rusty and the others pulled on him. She had tried to explain, but he wouldn't listen, telling her to just go home.

Her parents couldn't even pick her up, as they had gone to an important business meeting a couple of days ago and wouldn't be back for another three days. When Cristina tried to explain to them what had really happened, they, like everyone else, wouldn't listen. They told her that, when they got back home, she was to be grounded for the rest of the school year.

She was under a lot of stress and had decided to go on a walk. She had just picked a random direction and started walking. It wasn't like she had anything else to do. Her parents let her keep her phone, but told her that one of the punishments would be that it would be turned off when they got home. She could only use it to call her parents or in case of an emergency, so no friend calls… Not that she even had any friends left to talk to. Even her best friend, Cookie stopped talking to her.

Cristina felt so alone. No one would listen and Lincoln was still going to be getting worse treatment… LINCOLN! Cristina froze, her eyes widening as she mentally face palmed. Rusty, Boy Jordan and Paige were still going to try to cause more damage. She remembered the letters and the package they were sending. If they opened those, Lincoln was going to be even more crushed. That poor kid didn't deserve any of this…

Cristina looked around her, trying to think of a way to stop this whole mess from escalating. She didn't have a clue as to where Lincoln lived and she didn't really know anything about Stella, but she had been to Girl Jordan's house a few times for pool parties, maybe she could tell her where Lincoln lived… No, she would more than likely just punch Cristina in the face.

Cristina sighed, rubbing her face. This was so hard and unfair; she didn't even know where to start. She couldn't ask anyone for help, there just wasn't anyone that would help her. It would help if Clyde was still around, she could easily force him to tell her, but he wasn't. Maybe she could ask an adult for help… Maybe her old elementary teacher…

A sudden idea hit Cristina, making her both super nervous and hopeful. Lincoln's little sisters still go to elementary school. She could find one of them and follow them home. There school didn't get out for another hour… That was plenty of time to get there.

Cristina turned and started to run down the street. This could work, this could help Lincoln and clear her name. She would just have to earn everyone's trust, but as long as she could, she could help Lincoln… Cristina was never going to get over that one… She had spent so long hating him and now here she was trying to stop him from getting hurt even more. Just because she didn't really like him as a person, didn't mean she wished any of this on...

"BAM…"

Cristina crashed into someone, causing her to fall on her butt for the second time that day. She heard an irritated groan and she looked up, seeing one of the last people she wanted to. "Oh… Sorry Cookie…"

Cookie didn't respond right away, just glaring at Cristina for a few moments.

Cristina let out a sigh, rubbing her face. "Look Cookie, I tried to explain this already, but I'm not the one who did this to Lincoln. If you would just let me explain what happened, I could…"

"Stop."

Cristina closed her mouth, frowning. Cookie gave her an angry look and shook her head. "Don't lie to me. We both know you hate Lincoln, you even said so this morning. I let that slide because you can be a bit mean without meaning to, but what you did to him today… That was just evil. I never really liked him much myself, still wouldn't say he is my favorite person, but I wouldn't ever do that to him and I thought you wouldn't either. I just want to know… why did you do it?"

Cristina slowly pulled herself to her feet, her frown growing as Cookie took a step back. "Why? People keep asking me why I did it… But nobody asks me "If" I did it. You tell me not to lie to you, but I haven't… I didn't like Lincoln… But I wouldn't ever do what people say I did. Where would I even get that much blood? I'm tired of people telling me what they think I did… Damn it, it wasn't me. It was… Aw, why even bother? You wouldn't even believe me anyway… I'm going to fix this, please move."

Cookie didn't move, she just stood in front of Cristina, looking her over. "Didn't?"

Cristina raised a brow, giving her a confused look. "Didn't what?"

Cookie sighed, crossing her arms. "You said you Didn't like Lincoln. As in, "I didn't like Lincoln", rather than "I don't like Lincoln"… As in… You don't hate him anymore. You didn't do it, did you? The prank I mean. We both know you were still a jerk to him, but you aren't a bully."

Cristina looked at her friends in shock. "Wait… You believe me?"

Cookie looked her over for a moment before slowly nodding. "Yeah… Also, we both know you are terrible with a computer. There is no way that you could have deleted Lincoln's school records."

Cristina's mouth dropped slightly. "You believe me?..." Cristina felt tears welling in her eyes and she let out a tired sigh. "Not even my parents would listen to me… You have no idea how much this means to me… But why did you avoid me if you knew I… Wait… Did you say Lincoln's school records were deleted?"

Cookie nodded, her face growing soft. "Yeah, they were. Lincoln has been kicked out until they are either found or rebuilt… His sisters want your blood… Lynn is a very scary girl and if Lincoln's other sisters are anything like her… well, you are royally screwed… I'm sorry that I avoided you… I just had to be certain that you didn't do it. People say you did a lot of things… Most of them are ridiculous, but the blood thing and the chemicals in the locker, you could have done that… But just because you are capable of doing something, doesn't mean you would have… Really, the only reason I believe you is because of how upset you were at yourself after what happened this morning. I know you don't really hate Lincoln as much as you did or even as much as you thought."

Cristina felt so relieved that she thought she was going to pass out. It like a great weight was lifted from her shoulders… Only for it to come back again when she realized that Cookie was just one person and that she would still have to convince everyone else too. Though, the weight was a little bit lighter…

"So… Who really did it?"

Cristina looked up at Cookie. "What?"

Cookie sighed, face palming. "The prank, who did it?"

Cristina nodded, feeling a bit dumb. "Oh… Yeah, sorry. It was Rusty, Boy Jordan and Paige. They have a few… Grudges against Lincoln… even if most of them don't really make any sense."

"Says the kettle to the pot."

Cristina frowned, giving her an offended look. "What is that supposed to mean?"

Cookie snorted. "You have been avoiding Lincoln for over a year like he is a sick perv and a monster. All because of a silly little crush and a video of him kissing a photo of you. That is a pretty stupid reason to hate someone. Anyway, what do you plan on doing?"

Cristina sighed, shaking her head. "I need to get to Lincoln's house and stop them from opening a package and some letters… It might make Lincoln feel even worse and I don't want that."

Cookie raised a brow, giving her a small smile. "Awe, it almost sounds like you care about the white rabbit. That's sweet… So, what are in these letters and the package?"

Cristina rolled her eyes, starting to walk and as she moved to Cookie, she followed. "Hate mail and a glitter bomb, both of which Rusty and the others sent… There is a video of what happened to Lincoln… isn't there?"

Cookie gave her a curious look. "Umm… Yeah, actually there is… How did you know? In fact, how do you know everything that happened? You left before most of this happened and you seem to know more than anyone. Cristina… What is really going on?"

Cristina sighed, turning to look at Cookie. "Look, can this wait? I really need to get to the elementary school and talk to one of Lincoln's sisters. Hopefully they wouldn't have heard about what happened yet and I can catch them before they leave school… Wait… What are you even doing here? Shouldn't you still be at school?"

Cookie shrugged. "No, they let out early because of the blood. I guess it was a health hazard or something. I'm not going to complain about less school. Anyway, what do you plan to do if you manage to get to Lincoln's house? From the way Lynn was guarding Lincoln after you left, I doubt you are going to be able to get close to him, even if he is willing to talk."

Cristina shook her head, rubbing her face. "I don't know. I'll think of something when I get there. So, why are you helping me? I thought you hated Lincoln and I still don't know why that is."

Cookie smiled, making Cristina raise a brow. "I don't exactly hate him… I just don't like his face. He smiles too much and that silly turkey tail of his makes me mad… We should make him cookies. Cookies always makes people feel better, even if it's only a little."

Cristina gave her a confused look. "I swear you have bipolar… First you say you hate him, they you say you only dislike his smile and his hair and now you want to make him cookies? You say my reason for hating him was stupid…"

Cookie sighed, scratching her chin. "I guess I changed my mind. I mean, I would much rather see that stupid smile than that awful sad look and I like his white hair more than blood red… Do you think he likes chocolate chip?"

Cristina shook her head again. "I don't know, ask his sisters when we talk to them… What is with you and cookies anyway?"

Cookie shrugged, putting her hand into her pocket. "They taste good. I think I'm going to make chocolate chip and peanut butter cookies. Then he can decide which he likes… We are here."

Cristina looked up, frowning. "Yeah… The elementary school… Now I guess we just wait for school to get out…"

Cookie nodded, turning her head to Cristina. "Yeah… We have enough time for you to tell me the full story and I do mean, the full story. Start from this morning, up to this moment."

Cristina sighed, nodding. "Fine… It started when I had to sit close to Lincoln when the other seats on the bus were full…"

Cristina let out a sigh and brought her hands to rub her temples. "And then I walked into you, falling on my butt for the second time, though, this time didn't lead to someone getting soaked in blood."

Cookie looked at her with her mouth slightly agape. "Wait… So Paige forced you to kiss her? Isn't that like… Sexual assault? Couldn't you threaten to call the police on her or something? You could get her to work against the other two and work out a deal between you two."

Cristina sighed, thinking it over. "No, that wouldn't work. It would be three people against two and the majority of the town probably knows about what happened by now. I'll be lucky if I even get to finish the school year. Principal Green will just find another reason to keep me out of school…"

"RING…"

Cristina jumped a little as the school bell went off, signaling the end of the day. She and Cookie turned to the school, looking at the front door. "We can talk about this later, first, look for Lincoln's sisters… preferably the black haired one. She always seemed a bit less instable."

Cookie nodded, watching cars pull into the school. "Okay… So, what do you plan on saying to her? Or do you plan on winging this too? Do you even know what her name is?"

Cristina sighed, continuing to look around. "I don't know what I'll say, yet that is and I think her name is Lucy. She and that Haiku girl are always hanging out with each other and I've heard her mention it a few times. If we can't find Lucy, we could always find Haiku, we just need to find someone that knows where Lincoln lives…"

"And why do you need to know that?"

Cristina and Cookie jumped, letting out squeaks of panic as someone snuck up behind them. They took several deep breaths before turning to face them. "Oh, Haiku… We were hoping to find Lucy, but you will work. We need to know where Lincoln lives and we know you and Lucy are…"

"No."

Cristina frowned, looking at the angry Haiku. "Why not?"

Haiku crossed her arms, giving Cristina a scowl. "I think we all know why. Do you really think that after what you did to Lincoln, I would let you anywhere near him? Why did you do that to him? Lincoln didn't do anything to deserve it. Not to mention, Lucy is very upset. It took me nearly two hours to get her to come out of the vents. I don't even know where her little sisters are. Lucy when to find them and I'm going to walk them home. You had better both be gone before they get here or I will make you wish that you never showed your face."

Cristina sighed taking a step back. "Look Haiku, this is just a huge misunderstanding. I didn't do those things to Lincoln, but if I don't get to him, more things will happen to him…"

Cristina trailed off as Haiku took a couple of steps closer to her. "Are you threatening Lincoln? Isn't the blood more than enough? What about his school records? What else do you have planned? Why do you hate him so much? What is wrong with you? Just leave or I will make sure you can never…"

"That's enough Haiku…"

Haiku frowned and she, along with Cristina and Cookie turned to look at Lucy. She had her arm around the twins and was holding Lisa's hand in her other. She turned her head to look at Cristina and Cristina felt ice in the air, making her step back. "Why are you here?"

Cristina sighed, crossing her arms over her stomach. "I need to speak with Lincoln."

Lucy tilted her head so her hair moved away from one eye and she glared at Cristina. "Why? So you can bully him again?"

Cristina shook her head, feeling really uneasy. "No, because I'm worried about him. I didn't do those things that everyone says and if we don't get there soon, Lincoln will be finding a rather unpleasant set of hate mail and there is a glitter bomb that was sent for you girls. Please, I know you all hate me, but do you really what Lincoln to read hate mail?"

Lucy straightened her head, hiding her eyes. "No. And I know him seeing you would make him even more upset. Please leave. I will look for these packages and tell Lori… Why are you trying to help if you are the one who did this? How do I now if you aren't planning to do something even worse to him? Why would I ever believe that you didn't do it? We all know how much you hate him, so why the sudden change of heart?"

Cristina frowned, looking at the ground. "I know that I haven't treated Lincoln very well in the past, but I don't hate him anymore… I just want this whole mess to end and…"

"DON'T LIE YOU BITCH! WE ALL KNOW ABOUT WHAT YOU SAID THIS MORNING! JUST LEAVE!"

Cristina flinched and she looking at her feet. "Lucy please… I would never do anything like…"

"LEAVE!"

Cristina sighed and turned away. "Fine, I'm just trying to fix the mess Rusty and the others made. Just keep the letters away from Lincoln and don't open any packages in the house… I'm sorry… Come on Cookie, let's go home…"

* * *

**This was a pain to write… Anyway, thanks for reading this chapter and I hope you enjoyed. Please, feel free to review and tell me what you think. As always, have a good one. ^_^**


	5. Chapter 5

Lincoln let out a sigh as he sat on the couch with the frustrated Lori and Lynn. He was wearing his pajamas and a pair of bunny slippers. His hair was wet from all of his sisters' attempts at trying to wash the blood from his hair, an endeavor that is still on its way and one that has used over three bottles of shampoo. Lincoln, was ready to give up.

He just felt miserable and still hadn't said a single word since the incident. His parents had stopped by for about fifteen minutes, but had to leave to talk with the school. Something about the school trying to avoid getting sued or something along those lines. Leaving Lincoln, with his two older sisters, who were both currently trying to find a way to get the rest of the blood from his hair.

"Ugh… Why can't anything be simple? We have the stupid internet, which is full of tons of pointless videos and pictures, but the one thing we actually need, we can find. This is literally the worst… Sorry Lincy, just give us a few more minutes and I'm sure we can find a way to bring back your beautiful white hair."

Lincoln turned to look at Lori and gave her a small nod, making her frown.

"Come on Linc… Please say something… I don't like this quiet you…"

Lincoln sighed, looking at the floor. "Sorry…"

Lori gave him a sad look and leaned down to hug him. "Hey, don't be apologizing. It's not your fault this happened."

Lynn nodded in agreement, placing her hand on his back to rub it. "Yeah, it's that jerk, Cristina's fault. Just try to relax, okay? We will get this whole thing sorted out, you'll see."

Lincoln slowly nodded. "Okay…"

Lynn sighed, pulling Lincoln into a tight hug. "Yeah… Well, I guess that is better than you saying nothing…

"_Click…_"

They all looked up as the door opened, revealing Lucy, Lola, Lana, Lisa and much to Lincoln's surprise, Haiku. As soon as the twins saw Lincoln, they dashed for him, jumping into his arms. "Lincy, we were so scared when we heard about what happened. Did you get hurt? What about your hair? Is it ruined forever? Is it…"

Lincoln pulled them both into a hug. He was very tired and he wasn't really in the mood to talk, but he wasn't going to hurt their feelings by not answering. "No, I'm not hurt and my hair will grow out eventually… Maybe I should just shave it off…"

"NO!"

Lincoln flinched at the response from the girls. He looked at the ground. He didn't like the yelling… He had already started to get a head ache. "Okay…" Lincoln let out a sigh and Lucy stepped up to him, looking at him. "Are you okay? Have you guys checked the mail yet? Cristina told us that there was…"

Lincoln felt his blood boil and his hands shot out to grab Lucy, pulling her into a hug. "Cristina? What did she do? Did she try anything with you? I swear to god if she tried to hurt any of you, I will…"

Lucy placed her hand over Lincoln mouth, cutting him off. "Linconl, calm down. We are fine… Actually, she tried to get us to tell her where you were… I didn't trust her, so I told her to go home… Although, she did want to warn you about some mail… Not sure why she would try to help if she sent it, but why does she do anything?"

Lincoln gave her a blank look. "Mail?"

Lucy nodded, but it was Haiku that replied. "Yes, mail. She claimed that Rusty and some other people sent you some… not so nice letters and a glitter bomb. I have a hard time believing that one of your best friends would send you hate mail… And err… Please don't shave your head, I may have an idea of how to remove the blood from your hair… I may have some experience… Please don't ask…"

Lincoln let out a tired, if not slightly relieved sigh. "Rusty isn't really one of my best friends anymore… But I doubt he would send me hate mail…"

Haiku gave Lincoln a look over, frowning. "As much as I don't like people smiling too much, seeing you frown this much, is far worse… It is like a beacon of light in this dark world has grown dim and I dislike it very much."

Lincoln gave Haiku a surprised look. Sure they were somewhat friends, but for Haiku to say something so… Pleasant, was shocking… And shocking Lincoln even more, Haiku leaned in and gave him an awkward, yet sweet hug. "I know we haven't always seen eye to eye, but I want you to know, I appreciate our friendship. You need to know, not everyone is against you."

Lincoln was unsure how to take this. He appreciated her words and he could hear her honesty in them. He looked at her, still hugging him and he sighed, wrapping his arms around her. "Thanks… That means a lot to me."

Haiku nodded, pulling out of their hug, her face having turned a bit pink. "Of course… Anyway, about the hair. Just take three equal parts, Hydrogen Peroxide, baking soda and shampoo. Leave it in for a couple of hours and rinse. It will probably irritate your head, but it won't do any damage as long as you use conditioner after. Also, you should do this before too much longer or it will be a lot harder to get the blood out."

Lincoln nodded, feeling Lori's hand pat his shoulder. "Thanks Haiku, it would be nice to have my usual hair color."

Haiku nodded, giving him a frown. "Yeah, you look a lot better with white. Red isn't your color…"

Lori brought her hand to Lincoln's head, ruffling his hair. "Definitely not his color… Anyway, it's getting late and I need to pick up the rest of our sisters from high school. Lynn, do you think you could clean his hair while I'm gone?"

Lynn nodded and Lori pulled herself from the couch, standing. "Alright, I'll be back as soon as I can. Oh, and check the mail, anything for Lincoln or any packages, just leave on the coffee table. I don't want any more bullying…"

They all nodded, watching as Lori took off through the door. After it closed, Haiku turned to Lincoln and Lynn, letting out a sigh. "So… Do you need my help with his hair?"

Lynn nodded, scooting closer to Lincoln. "Yeah, I'm not exactly… Great with these kinds of things. I don't want to end up ruining Lincoln's hair… Well, more so than it already is..."

Haiku nodded, scooting over to Lincoln, looking at his head. "Okay, just get the supplies and we can get started. Lincoln's hair is wet enough already, so it should go in easy enough."

Lynn gave Lincoln's back a quick pat before pulling off of the couch. "Alright, I'll go get the stuff. Hey Luce, why don't you grab the baking soda while I get the other stuff."

Lucy nodded, moving for the kitchen. "Okay."

Lincoln let out a sigh as Lisa and the twins moved to sit at the end of the couch, giving Haiku room to look at his hair. "Hmm… What a waste of perfectly good blood… Err… Sorry…"

Lincoln looked up at Haiku and shrugged. "It's fine…"

Haiku shook her head, giving him a frown. "No, it's really not. You look miserable and gloomy. And I'm not talking about the good kind. How do you really feel?"

Lincoln sighed, looking at his legs. "I'm upset and embarrassed… I have never been more humiliated in my life. But I'm also angry and confused."

Haiku nodded, giving him a frown. "Want to talk about it?"

Lincoln looked up from his legs. "Well… I'm angry because Cristina was a jerk this morning and I told her I would leave her alone and she turns around and does this… I just don't get it…"

Haiku nodded. "I understand your anger and your confusion… But are you sure it was really her?"

Lincoln raised a brow. "What do you mean?"

Haiku sighed, bringing her hand to pat his back. "What I mean is, is there any proof that she did it? You know, any witnesses or security camera proof? I don't mean to say you are lying, I just think it's a bit odd that she could have set anything like this up since this morning. I mean, from what I heard, you were covered from head to toe. That's a lot of blood, as in gallons."

Lincoln frowned, moving a hand to his chin. "Hmm… Well… She did seem upset this morning after she yelled at me… And I did see her face after the blood fell on me… I thought she just thought she had gone too far… But I guess she would have a hard time getting all of the blood into the school by herself in one day… So either she would have had to have done all of this days in advance or… Wait… she didn't even know I was still around… How could she have done that?"

"I don't know about anyone else, but I think you are just over thinking it."

Lincoln turned his head in surprise, seeing Lynn standing beside the couch, next to Lucy. "What do you mean?"

Lynn sighed, moving to sit next to Lincoln, setting the peroxide and shampoo down. "I mean, even if Cristina wasn't the one who pranked you, she still made you cry. Would it really be so bad to let her be the one who got punished?"

Lincoln gave her a blank look. "Yes, yes it would. Come on Lynn, if Cristina took the punishment for something she didn't do, that the person who really did it would get away with it. Cristina is far from my favorite person, but not even she would deserve punishment for something she didn't do."

Lynn opened her mouth to argue, but quickly closed it. "That is a fair point… Fine, if Cristina didn't do it, then what? How would you even find out? There were no cameras and despite the many people that swore they saw she by your locker before it happened, none of them could prove it. There is just as much evidence against Cristina as there is against anyone else. If no one can prove it was her, then no one can prove it wasn't."

Lincoln frowned, looking back at his legs. "Well… What if we just… You know… ask her?"

Lincoln could feel everyone's eyes on him, making him uncomfortable. "Look, if we talk to her and she can prove it wasn't her, then we can look for the person who is really responsible… But if she can't prove it, then she can burn in hell…"

"Geez Linc… That was pretty dark…"

Lincoln sighed, feeling a mix of emotions. "I don't care. Either way, once this is over with, I'm not letting Cristina bully me anymore. If she still has it out for me because of that stupid video, then she can screw off. If she is over it, well, I'm not sure. Either way, I'm not taking anymore crap from her."

Lynn sighed, placing her arm around him. "Okay Linc… Why don't we talk about this more later. Right now, let's fix your hair. Besides, you have a long time to figure this all out, what with your missing school records and all."

"Well… actually, I may be able to help with that. I could just rebuild his records and send them to the school. It would take a few days, but once they are sent out, he could go back in a week."

Lincoln turned his head to look at Lisa, raising a brow. "Wait, you can do that? A week doesn't seem like a very long time. The school said they could do that, but it could take several months…"

Lisa snorted, adjusting her glasses. "Please, this is me we are talking about. I shall start post haste."

Lincoln watched as Lisa jumped from the couch and headed for the stairs. He watched her go before shaking his head. "If only all my problems can be solved that easily… And I only just got kicked out… Is it just me or do things seem to be going too fast? I'm starting to feel over whelmed… I mean, if it was Cristina and I'm going back to school in a week… Isn't she as well? And what about if she didn't do it and we can't figure out who did it? Maybe Lisa should just let the school do it…"

Lynn grabbed Lincoln's shoulders, turning him to look at her. "Lincoln, calm down. You are freaking out. We have a week to figure this all out, so just take it one day at a time."

Lincoln sighed, trying to calm himself. "I know, I'm just nervous… I mean, what are the chances that Cristina didn't actually do it and that someone else did? Well, okay… I guess there are quite a few people who don't like me, but still…"

Lincoln trailed off as Lynn pulled him into a tight hug. "Just relax Linc. You aren't alone and I promise I'll be there for you. You even have Stella and Girl Jordan backing you up. I'm sure that once school starts back up tomorrow, I can talk to them and they can help keep people off your back too. Things might be a bit over whelming, but they will calm down. Heck, if you can figure out that Cristina might not be the one who did this, then I'm sure you can figure out this. You are the man with the plan after all."

Lincoln snorted, rolling his eyes, but he couldn't help but to give a small smile. "Thanks Lynn…"

Lynn nodded, rubbing his back for a moment before pulling out of the hug. "Don't mention it. Anyway, why don't we clean up your hair and put this all on hold until the others are home."

Lincoln nodded, sighing as Lynn ruffled his hair. Maybe Cristina did it, maybe she didn't. For right now, Lincoln just wanted his hair clean. He still felt like there was blood soaking into his skin and he didn't think he would ever get the taste of his out of his mouth or the smell of it out of his nose. He wouldn't ever be able to look at meat quite the same again…

"Hey Haiku, how much should we mix up for his hair?"

Lincoln blinked as he was snapped from his thoughts. He looked at Lynn as she took a small bowl from Lucy, along with the baking soda and set them on the table. Haiku leaned over Lincoln to pull everything towards herself. "Not a lot, just enough to coat his hair."

Lincoln let out a sigh. Things might be a bit overwhelming, but at least he had his sisters and his friends to support him. Maybe things wouldn't be as bad as he thought…

* * *

"Come on Lori, can't you drive any faster? We have to make sure Lincoln is alright."

Lori let out a frustrated sigh. "I told you, I'm not going to speed. Lincoln isn't going anywhere and I'm not going to get a speeding ticket."

Lori loved her sisters, but sometimes they could get on her nerves… Then again… They were just worried about Lincoln. Really, she couldn't blame them from being upset. When she got to the high school and her younger sisters got into the van, Luna showed her a video from the middle school. It was from the incident… Lori, was truly heartbroken. She had seen Lincoln's face after the prank happened, but to see his face while it happened… His eyes looked so sad and hurt… Lori's eyes narrowed in anger. She was going to kill Cristina…

"So umm… Lori, what does mom and dad think about this whole thing?"

Lori frowned, taking a quick look at Luan in the rear view mirror. "They are upset, just like we are. They got a call from school, something about wanting to meet with them so they can avoid a lawsuit. Really pisses me off that the school is more worried about some stupid money than they are with making sure Lincoln is safe…"

Luan slouched and her brows furrowed. "Oh… I see… Have they been home to see Lincoln yet?"

Lori nodded, letting out a tired sigh. "Yes, but they didn't get to stay for long. One of dad's coworkers drove them, so I have no idea when they'll be back home."

Luna gave Luan a hug while looking at Lori. "So… How was Lincoln taking the whole thing? I mean… Was he still crying when you left?"

Lori shook her head, turning the van down a familiar road. "No, but he barely talked once he got home. It wasn't until just before Haiku and Lucy came with Lisa and the twins that he started to talk again. I just hope they got him to talk a bit more… I don't like seeing him so upset…"

Lori was beyond angry with Cristina. She made Lincoln cry, ruined his lovely hair, bullied him… She was going to pay.

Lori shook her head, trying to clear her mind. She would deal with Cristina some other time. Very soon, they would be home and she could go back to helping Lincoln… God she hoped his hair would get cleaned. Lincoln already had enough trouble with people making fun of his hair and if he had to shave his head… Lori was going to literally kill Cristina.

She turned onto their road, letting out a sigh. Today had been too stressful from the start, but now? Now she just wanted to take a long nap… But Lincoln had to come first… God, she was getting overwhelmed…

"Wow Lori, you might want to stop!"

Lori's snapped out of it, stepping on the brakes, stopping in front of their house. She blinked a few times before looking around. She felt her face heat up and she frowned. "Sorry…" She had gotten so far into her thoughts, she hadn't realized that she almost missed their stop.

She looked behind her, looking at Luna and Luan. They were both giving her worried looks.

"Geez Dude, are you okay? You almost missed our stop."

Lori frowned, turning her head to look around. "Sorry guys, just give me a second to get parked… I'm just… distracted."

She let out a sigh. Once they got into the house, she was done driving for the day. She would make some tea, she would sit with Lincoln and she would hug him. Even if he didn't want it, she needed it.

Lori turned her head, looking behind the van before backing up and driving into the driveway. She parked and turned off the van before resting her head against the wheel. She felt a hand rest on her back, rubbing a small circle in her back.

"Come on Lori, everything is going to be fine. I know Lincoln is upset right now, but he'll be fine… I think… Anyway, this is Lincy, he's smart and has, like, a super tough skin. And like, if he is still really upset, he like, totally has us."

Lori turned her head, looking at Leni in mild surprise. Leni might be a bit… dense, but she definitely wasn't stupid. "Heh… Yeah, I guess you're right… Come on, let's go inside. I want to see if Lynn managed to get the rest of the blood out of his hair."

The others nodded, following suit as Lori opened her door, hopping out of the van. She closed the door and looked up at their house. She was feeling nervous about Lincoln. How would he be handling this all and would he rather be with his sisters or be alone?

Lori sighed, moving for the house. She shouldn't be nervous. It simply didn't make sense. Lincoln was the one that was pranked, not her. She shook her head. Perhaps it was just that she didn't know how he was doing, perhaps it was that she would be going off to collage soon… more than likely it was both. She didn't want to leave… Maybe Bobby would be okay with waiting another year, just until Lori was sure that Lincoln could go back to school without getting bullied… Yeah, she would call him tonight and they could talk about it… or maybe tomorrow…

Lori stepped up to the house, climbing the few steps that lead to the door, her sisters directly behind her. She put her hand on the door knob, about to open it, but hesitated. Why was she hesitating?

Lori shook her head, turning the knob. The door slowly swung inward as she, along with the others, stepped in. Lori looked around, slight confusion filling her. Lincoln and the others weren't there. When she left for the high school, they were sitting on the couch, discussing Lincoln's hair… Oh... Lori mentally face palmed. Of course, they were probably all upstairs, helping Lincoln with his hair.

"Come on, they are probably upstairs washing Lincoln's hair."

Lori gave them a quick look before she headed or the stairs, hearing the door close behind her. She took them two at a time, wanting to check on Lincoln, but not wanting to seem like she was freaking out. There were enough problems as it was…

"Hold still Linc, I'm trying to scrub it out…"

"Yeah, along with all my hair…"

"Come now Lincoln, you have thick hair. It'll take more than that to make you go bald."

Lori let out a sigh. Lincoln's complaining brought a small amount of relief to her. He didn't sound upset or angry, just annoyed. She would take an annoyed Lincoln any day.

She led her sisters to the bathroom, pausing outside the half closed door. "Lincy, we're home."

Lori heard the sound of the water being turned off and she took a step back. There was a bit of a clamber, as what Lori assumed to be Lincoln and the others finishing up, and after a few moments, the door swung open.

Standing in the middle of Lynn and Haiku, was a shirtless Lincoln, with a towel over his hair, as the girls dried it. Lincoln tried to move the towel from his eyes, but Lynn just slapped his hand away. "Come on Lynn, I can dry my own hair. You won't let me even see it and I want to know if it's clean…"

Lynn didn't answer and Lincoln crossed his arms over his chest, letting out a sigh, making Lori and the others let out amused chuckles. He looked much better. He still seemed down, but he was looking almost… happy…

"Hey guys, how's it going?"

Lynn and Haiku looked up at Lori for a moment before turning back to Lincoln. "Fine. His hair is mostly dry and hopefully, his hair is clean."

Lori raised a brow. Hopefully? Wouldn't they know if it was clean or not? Lori frowned, chances were, his hair didn't come clean and they were just holding off the inevitable…

"Alright Linc, now for the moment of truth…"

Lori bit her lip, praying to whoever would listen and begging for it to be just as white as a hare…

Haiku let go of her side of the towel and Lynn pulled her side, pulling the towel off of Lincoln's head, revealing Lincoln's hair… Lori almost burst into tears. His hair was white as snow and the light from the bathroom shined like starlight. It was beautiful…

Lincoln looked at his sisters and Haiku, a nervous look in his eyes. "So… Did it work?"

Lori stepped towards him, making him raise a brow. She pulled him into a tight hug, ruffling his hair. "It's perfect… Not even a drop of blood…"

Lori felt Lincoln relax into her, hugging her back. "Oh, thank god. I really didn't want to shave my head…"

Lori nodded, looking at Lynn and Haiku. "You two are the best. I was so worried his hair was ruined and I can't believe you got it so clean…"

Haiku and Lynn just shrugged, looking at their finished product. "We didn't have a choice. There was no way we would let Lincoln shave his head."

Lori nodded, looking down at Lincoln as he pulled from her. He turned to look at Haiku and Lynn, giving them a large smile, making them smile back in return. Lincoln stepped up to Haiku pulling her into a hug, putting a look of surprise on her face as well as bringing a pink hue to her pale face. "Thanks Haiku. This means a lot to me."

Haiku awkwardly returned the hug, though, less so than the one she gave him earlier that afternoon. "It's nothing. I just did what I needed to do."

Lincoln shook his head, bringing a hand to pat her back. "No, you didn't have to do anything. You walked my little sisters home, you gave us advice on my hair and then you helped wash it. I really appreciate this and I wish I knew how to repay you…"

Haiku sighed, relaxing a bit. "Really Lincoln, you don't need to repay me. I'm just happy to see you less sad. We are friends, I helped because I wanted to see you smile again."

Lincoln pulled his head away from her, giving her a surprised look. "You wanted to see me smile? I thought you hated it when people smile."

Haiku's face grew a little hotter and she looked away. "Normally I do… I err… Think you have a pleasant smile. Much better than most… Tell anyone I said that and I'll put a curse on you."

Lori smiled. She was very happy to see Lincoln with another friend. He had such a hard time after Clyde left and then when the others started to leave as well… It wasn't pretty… But now, he had Haiku, that girl Stella and the other one… Jordan? Anyway, seeing Lincoln smile, made Lori smile. He had a very nice smile.

She watched as Lincoln let Haiku go, turning towards Lynn, giving her a similar hug. "And thank you too." Lynn quickly returned the hug, looking much less awkward about it. "Like she said, no thanks necessary. There was no way I was going to let you shave your head; I've seen you bald a few times… Not something I want to see again… You look way better with hair… Anyway, enough mushy stuff. Why don't you go show the twins and Lucy your hair. I practically had to nail them down just to get you in here alone."

Lincoln nodded, holding the hug for a moment longer before turning away from her. He locked eyes with his other older sisters, making his smile grow. He headed past Lori, making her turn to watch as he hugged his sisters, moving from Leni, to Luan, to Luna. Their faces were filled with a mix of emotions, the primary being confusion and mild relief.

Lincoln paused to look at them all before moving for the twins room. Once he was gone, they all gave each other confused looks.

"Umm… I'm not the only one that can tell that was a half fake smile… Right?"

Lori looked at Haiku. Her face had morphed into one of concern and she didn't seem as happy as before. Lori looked at her sisters, seeing similar looks. Now that Lori thought about it… Lincoln did see too happy…

"I mean, I know he's definitely a lot happier about his hair, but he is far from over this whole mess."

Lori turned her attention to Lynn. She had completely lost her smile, trading it for a very serious look. Lori let out a sigh. "Okay… what's going on? I mean, other than the obvious."

Lynn sighed, looking behind Lori. "Maybe we should have a sibling meeting, just with the older sisters and Lincoln. We were talking about something after you left to pick up the others… And the more I think about it, the more I think it might be true… Even if it's hard to believe…"

Lori raised a brow in concern. "What do you mean? What is hard to believe?"

Lynn sighed, meeting Lori's eyes. "Lincoln thinks that Cristina might not actually be the one that did the prank…"

Lori frowned, crossing her arms. "And what would give him that idea? Cristina has done nothing but literally be a jerk to him. We know she bullied him this morning, so why would you think she wouldn't do all this to him?"

"Because it doesn't make sense."

Lori jumped slightly as Lincoln spoke from behind her, making her and the others turn to look at him. Lori narrowed her eyes. His smile had been replaced with a blank look, making Lori sigh. "And what about it doesn't make sense?"

Lincoln ran a hand through his hair, giving her a serious look. "When would she have had time?"

Lori furrowed her brows in confusion. "Time?"

Lincoln nodded. "Yes, time. She would have had to have set up my locker, the ceiling, break into the school's computer system, film the prank, up load it and all this would have had to be done in three or four hours. She could have done this all days in advance, but she didn't even know I still went to school. When she saw me on the bus, she was surprised to see me. Not in a good way, but she didn't know I was there. After the prank, I saw her and she seemed unhappy that I was pranked. At first I thought she might have been regretting her prank, but now I think she might have been genuinely displeased… Which makes me think she knows who really did it."

Lori blinked at Lincoln a few times trying to process his words. On one hand, it would be hard for Cristina to do all of that… but on the other, if she hated Lincoln as much as she claimed, she might be able to if she skipped her classes… Lori looked at Luan, making her raise a brow. "Luan, could one person do all of that in a few hours if they skipped classes."

Luan flinched slightly, making Lori frown. "I'm sorry, you are just the only one who would really know this kind of thing. I know you wouldn't go… Well, actually I'm not sure if you would go this fair, but I do know you wouldn't do it to be mean."

Luan nodded, still looking hurt. "I wouldn't try to hurt Lincoln… And I couldn't even do all of that stuff, at least not without some help. Didn't say Cristina told Haiku and Lucy there were packages? Those would have taken several days to arrive, unless they were delivered by Cristina herself. Does she even know where Lincoln lives?"

They all looked at Lincoln and he shook his head. "No, she doesn't. She tried to get Lucy to bring her here this afternoon."

Lori looked at him in thought. "So… What? Why are you concerned with whether or not Cristina did it? She was still a jerk to you and you just want to… Do what?"

Lincoln gave her a frown. "If she didn't do it, she shouldn't get punished for it. If someone else did it, I don't want them to get punished. I don't want them to try anything again. I'm tired of people being jerks to me and I just want it to stop. Don't think for a moment I'm doing this for Cristina. I just want to get through middle school, with my friends and move past this."

Lori sighed. Lincoln was making very good points and she didn't blame him for wanting to know the truth. But how could he be sure she didn't do it? "Okay… So, how do you plan on finding out?"

Lincoln nervously scratched the back of his head. "Well… I was… You know… Thinking about talking to her."

"No."

Lori was mildly surprised when she heard her own voice reply. She didn't even give it time to think about it. There was no way she was going to let Lincoln talk to his bully…

"Umm… Lori, I think we should let him."

Lori raise a brow in surprise, turning to look at Lynn. "And why should we? If she did to it, she might try something else."

Lynn shook her head, frowning. "Lori, come on. She is a twelve year old girl. What could she do to Lincoln? He isn't a defenseless child. For heaven's sake, he can keep up with me most of the time. If she tried to attack him, he could easily kick her ass. I mean look at him, sure he's scrawny, but he's got a bit of muscle. Not to mention he isn't stupid. We already discussed this and he wants us to go with him. She wouldn't try anything with you, me and his other older sisters. Nobody is that stupid."

Lori was truly taken aback. Never had Lynn talked so highly of Lincoln… She did have a good point though… If they went with him to meet her, then there was nothing Cristina could do… Lori turned to look at Lincoln. "So… where do you plan on meeting her? She isn't coming here."

Lincoln nodded, looking at Lynn. "I was hoping Lynn would ask Cookie tomorrow at school where Cristina lived. We could go to talk to her after school tomorrow and have her explain her side of the story. She wanted to talk anyway and if she can prove that she didn't do it, we can work towards figuring out who did."

Lori sighed. She didn't like this idea, but had to admit, it was well thought out… "I just… _Sigh_… Fine… If we are doing this, we are going to be with you the entire time. If she can prove that she didn't do it, fine, if she can't… Well, Cristina is going to wish she never messed with you."

Lincoln nodded. "Fine. Than tomorrow, I meet with Cristina and we sort this out once and for all. All of it, the video from last year, the kiss, the prank, I'm tired of it and it all ends."

Lori nodded, walking to Lincoln and pulling him into a hug. One way or another, this would end…

* * *

**Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. To say the least, it was interesting to write and it gave me a headache. I know some of you are going to think Lincoln and the others figured this all out too quickly, but rest assured, things are always more complicated than they seem. Anyway, please let me know what you think of this chapter and as always, have a good one. ^_^**


	6. Chapter 6

Cristina let out a sigh. She was tired, not having had very much sleep the night before. She had been up most of the night trying to think of a way for all of this trouble to end and when she finally managed to get to sleep, her dreams were filled with rivers of blood… At this rate, she would be a vegetarian…

After waking up early and being unable to go back to bed, she decided to watch some videos online… Only to find that to be a very bad idea. She started with watching kitten videos, trying to get herself to relax, then moved through to terrible life hacks that wouldn't work in a million years. After letting her computer play through things for a few long and very boring hours, she decided to take a break and grab some breakfast.

Not only did she manage to drop two separate slices of toast onto the floor, butter side down, but she also managed to get electrocuted when a third got stuck in the toaster. After bandaging a burn, she gave up on eating. At this rate, she would run out of food.

Deciding to return to her room, hoping to find a bar of chocolate or something, she managed to stub her toe. As in, really stubbing her toe. Not the simple, you stub your big toe and cry for a second. No, it was her kicking the corner of the wall full force as she tried to ascend the stairs and not just any toe, no, it was her little toe.

After feeling her toe shatter like a light bulb getting smashed with a baseball bat, she fell, face planting into the stairs.

Cristina slid down the stairs, curling into a tight ball starting to cry. Not only did she force her toe to her heel, but she also bit her tongue. Not hard enough to make it bleed, but it was really hurting…

Cristina lay there, wishing for her mother or father to come through the door and run to her. To scoop her into their arms, whispering kind words till she stopped crying. Then, after making sure she didn't break her toe, they would bring her to get a Flippy. Those always made her feel better…

But it didn't happen… and Cristina had a feeling her parents wouldn't ever do it again… It wasn't fair… She made a stupid mistake and yet the whole world was trying to break her down… It was working… She dreaded the day when her parents returned home… After today… It would be in three days… She wished she was a good person…

Cristina pulled herself out of her tight ball, trying to both rub the pain from her foot and to wipe the tears from her eyes. Neither was working… She gave up, deciding to just crawl up the stairs to her room. She was feeling really tired all of the sudden…

She hobbled into her room, moving for her bed, but froze, hearing something from her computer….

"Wait, I need your help. Where is Lincoln?"

Oh no… They didn't…

"Why? So you can bully him some more?"

Oh no no no no…

"I think you need to leave him alone. He already promised to leave you alone, so why can't you just leave…"

Cristina felt tears well in her eyes. They did… Rusty… Boy Jordan… Paige… They posted the whole thing… All of it… Cristina felt sick to her stomach. She couldn't look away from her computer. This was worse than being there… Seeing the whole thing again…

"BANG… AHHHH… THUND…"

Cristina couldn't… It was too much… She felt bile rise in her throat… She forced her feet to move, dashing for her trash can. Having an empty stomach, all she could do was dry heave. Pain shot through her stomach as her muscles tightened, trying to stop her heaves… It wasn't working… So much blood… The look in Lincoln's eyes… She thought it was bad in her dreams… She thought it was bad in real life… But it was way worse seeing it up close on camera… Oh god…

Cristina wanted the noise to stop… She could hear the laughs of the classes… She heard Lincoln's sister yell at them to stop… She heard her demand to know who it was… The kids all blamed Cristina… She got yelled at… She ran off crying… But the thing that really hurt… Was hearing Lincoln's broken hearted voice…

"I want to go home…"

"Why did she do this?"

Cristina sat up, reaching out for the nearest object and chucked it at her computer, smashing the screen. It died immediately. She didn't care that she just destroyed her computer… She just had to make it stop… Really, what was the chance that the video would play on her computer at that moment?

She didn't want to think about it… She couldn't… She had to make it stop… It didn't…

Cristina pulled herself to her feet, ignoring the pain shooting through her foot and wiping her mouth. She had to get out of there. She had to get out now…

Cristina started for her door, not even bothering to pull on her shoes. If she stayed in her room, much less her house, for one more second, she was going to pull out her hair…

She limped down the stairs, wiping her eyes dry. No more crying. No more thinking. No more anything. She just needed to go outside. She felt like she was suffocating. Her heart was pounding, her mind was foggy…

She raced out of her house, ignoring the pain in her foot. She didn't care where she went, she just had to move. If she stopped, her thoughts would overwhelm her…

* * *

Cristina stopped running, her lungs burning and her foot throbbing. She had finally calmed down enough to think straight, though, she wish she couldn't. Running felt great, until it started to hurt, then, she remembered her foot. She was about forty percent sure she broke her toe…

She had stopped behind some random building, doubled over as she gasped for breath. She had no idea where she was and quite frankly, she didn't care. Maybe she could keep running and just leave her troubles behind… No, she wasn't wearing shoes… She might be a bit dense at times, but she wasn't stupid. Her feet were already killing her… And she was really thirsty…

She slowly limped to the front of the building, freezing when she realized where she was. Flip's? How the hell did she end up here? She shook her head, confusion starting to fill her head. God she hoped she had some money…

She slid her hands into her skirt's pockets, digging around. She wrapped a hand around a few pieces of paper, pulling it out. She looked at it, letting out a sigh. A five and a one… Just enough to get a Flippy and a snack… That is if Flip didn't raise the prices again… Cheep old coot…

Letting out an exhausted sigh, she limped into the store, hoping she wouldn't get kicked out for not wearing shoes. She slowly made her way to the back of the store, making a line to the Flippy machine, frowning when she saw that her favorite flavor was out.

She shook her head, getting a random flavor. At this point, she was so tired and thirsty, she would drink the Flip special. Which she was pretty sure was just juice and glow stick fluid… Sometimes she wondered how that man didn't get shut down… She once saw him pull a sock out of the nacho cheese machine… That almost made her puke… She hadn't had nachos since…

She grabbed her drink and headed to the checkout counter, grabbing a bag of chips on her way. Luckily, Flip was at the counter, waiting for her. She definitely wasn't in the mood for his crap…

"Hey there girly, find what you need? Maybe you would be interested in buying…"

Cristina slammed her cup and the chips down, making Flip jump. "No thank you. Just this."

Flip gave her a blank look before calculating the price of her stuff. "Four bucks. What's got you down kid?"

Cristina handed him the five dollar bill, waiting for her change. "Life."

Flip gave her, her change and raised a brow. "What on earth does a kid know about life? You've barely lived it."

Cristina grabbed her things and turned around, moving for the door. "I think you might be surprised. Of course, this is you I'm talk…"

"Come on Rusty, tell us more."

Cristina froze, stopping mid sentence. Oh no…

Her heart skipped a beat as three very familiar looking kids came into the store, followed closely by two others Cristina didn't know. She started backing up, moving out of sight. She dashed behind a shelf just as Paige looked where she had just been, making her heart pound. No, no, no… God, please…

Paige shrugged, turning back to the others. "Come on Rusty, stop talking out your butt. We all know you have never dated anyone. You haven't even ever kissed a girl… And you mother doesn't count."

Cristina started moving around the shelf, moving in opposition with the threat. She was scared. She didn't know what they would do if they saw her and she didn't want to find out…

"Oh really? Well, we both know you can't say the same about you, now can we?"

Cristina's face grew hot and she saw Paige's grow red as she looked away. She would never forget that… She hated her so much… She wanted to punch her… But Cristina was terrified she would try to kiss her again… She didn't like it… It made her feel dirty. When she had gotten home yesterday, she had taken the longes shower of her life and she brushed her teeth until she bled… her gums were still sore…

"Shut up. You weren't supposed to tell anyone about that…"

"Oh, come on Paige. How could you kiss the girl that hurt Lincoln?"

Cristina's blood started to boil as she heard one of the other kids speak. She didn't know what they were told, but it definitely wasn't the truth…

"I uhh… I didn't know it was her until after… Besides, it was a dare. Who would want to kiss her because they wanted to anyway? Not me, that's for sure."

"Yeah, I bet. I still can't believe Lincoln ever liked her. If I ever see her… Well, for her sake, she had better move cities."

Cristina frowned, moving to the next shelf. She was doing her best to ignore the words of these jerks… But it was harder that she would have thought… She really didn't want to get caught…

She saw all of them turn towards the Flippy station and she bolted, moving for the door. She only had one chance and she wasn't going to waste it…

"HEY! IT'S HER!"

Cristina's heart stopped as she heard footsteps behind her, quickly growing louder. Why didn't she wait for them to leave?

She ran, trying to pick up speed, but having just finished running for the last hour, along with her toe, that she was about eighty percent sure was broken, and the fact that she was running with things in her hands, she wasn't amounting to much…

"OUFF…"

Cristina managed to make it to the edge of Flip's before she was tackled onto the grass. She felt arms wrap around her, keeping her in place and making her drop her food and cup. She was turned to face them as she desperately tried to claw her way out of the tight grip around her. She didn't know the kid who was holding her, but he know who she was and it seemed that he was out for blood…

Cristina let out a pained groan as her arms were wrenched behind her back, bringing tears to her eyes. "Please, let me go. Please, I didn't do…"

"SMACK…"

Cristina was cut off as she received a hard slap to the face. She tried harder to pull away, but the arms around her only held her tighter, making it hard to breath. She started to freak out again, her heart pounding and her thoughts growing fuzzy. She wanted to go home…

"Well, looks like you got your wish. Now that you have the girl responsible for hurting my friend, what are you going to do with her?"

Cristina closed her eyes. She wanted it to stop… Why did everything have to go wrong in just two days? Why did everyone hate her? Was it really her fault?

"I think she needs to know what it's like to get hurt. She publicly humiliated Lincoln… So I guess we could do the same… We could strip her down to her underwear and tie her to the school's flag pole tonight. We could just leave her there over night. I bet we would be given a metal or something… Everyone would probably just leave her there for a few days and just throw food scraps to her like a pig. How would you like that?"

Cristina shook her head, squeezing her legs closed as a hand grabbed at the bottom of her skirt. "Please… I didn't do it… it was Rusty and the others… Please…. I didn't do it… Please…. Don't hurt me…"

"Wha…? Ha, you seriously think we would believe that one of Lincoln's best friends would do that to him? You have to be the dumbest bitch I have ever met… I should kick you ass for even saying such a thing… You know what? Why embarrass you when we could just teach you a lesson? They say violence never solves anything, but I bet you wouldn't go near Lincoln again…"

Cristina tried to curl into a tight ball, managing to pull out of their grip… Or so she thought… All of the hands let her go, scaring her even more when nothing happened. She just curled more, pulling her skirt tight around her and bracing for what she knew was coming.

"Come on guys, this is a bit much, don't you think?"

Cristina almost opened an eye in surprise, hearing Paige question her friends, but they quickly tightened as a foot nailed her in the side, knocking her breath out. Pain shot through her as the foot returned, kicking her again and again, nailing her hip and stomach.

She was so scared and she thought she was going to be beaten to death…

"BAM…"

A foot collided with her head, making stars spin in her mind. She shot her hands to cover her head, sobbing in pain and wishing them to stop… Why were they doing this?

"Please stop…"

Cristina's cry was ignored as a foot came down on her hand, pressing her face into the dirt. Pressure was added to it as the owner stepped down. She felt her nose crack as it dug into the ground, filling her mouth with blood. She though they were going to kill her…

"STOP! STOP, YOU'RE GOING TO KILL HER! STOP!"

The weight on Cristina's head was quickly removed and she heard a loud thump, which was quickly followed by a low groan.

"What the fuck? I wasn't going to kill her, I was just teaching her a lesson."

"No, this is going too far. Leave her alone, I doubt she will ever go near Lincoln again… Isn't that right Cristina. Just move anything to let us know you agree and that you are okay. If you do, we will leave you alone"

Cristina raised a finger from her head, completely confused. Why was Paige stopping them? Didn't she hate her as much as them? Why did they even hate her? What was going on? "Please… I'm sorry… I'll never look at him again… I'll never go near him…. I'll never go to school again, just please… I promise… I promise… Please…. No more…"

"See? Now leave her alone… We should call for an ambulance. You really hurt her."

"Come on Paige. Since when do you have any… Oh… OH!... HOLY SHIT... You actually… Ha… Fine, have it your way. Come on guys, let's go. I'm sure she will stay far away from my dear friend, wouldn't you agree? I think she knows what will happen if she tries to tell anyone about how she got hurt. Good Bye Cris… oh, and watch your step. Wouldn't want to fall down anymore stairs, now would you?"

Cristina froze as a foot stepped next to her head, making her tremble. Please… Please… I just want to go home…

"SPLASH…"

Cristina started to flail as a cold Flippy was poured on her, making her shiver. She heard all of the guys start to laugh, making her curl up again. She didn't want to risk getting hurt worse if they decide to change their minds…

She tensed up as someone crouched done beside her, leaning down till Cristina felt a pair of lips touch her ear. "I am so sorry… Please… Forgive me… This whole thing was a giant mistake… I didn't know they would go this far… Please… Stay home. You will be safe there…"

"Paige, stop trying to kiss her and let's go."

"I didn't want this… I'm sorry…"

Cristina felt Paige stand and head off. She stayed in her curled up position for a long time, waiting for something to happen… She waited a really long time… She was cold, she was terrified, she hurt… She thought they were going to kill her… She waited for them to return… I'm sorry Lincoln… This is all my fault… I deserve this…

Cristina dragged herself to her front door. Everything hurt, she was wet and cold and she was one hundred percent certain that her toe was broken… Along with her nose… She shook her head, moving her hand to grab the door knob… her hand wouldn't close right…

She let out a sigh, slowly dropping to her knees. She was done. There was nothing left in her. She slid down, sitting, resting her back against the door. She was so tired, so hungry, so thirsty… It was too much to think about… She wanted her parents… She was scared… She was terrified… She wanted… "Mommy…"

"Cristina?"

* * *

**I have had a really bad day. I know this a really dark chapter, but there is a reason. Also, I stubbed my toe really hard when I tried to make toast earlier… it wasn't good. And yes, I dropped two slices butter side down and got shocked going for a third… Luckily, I didn't break a toe. Not breaking a toe was the only good thing about today…**

**Anyway, tell me what you think. As always, have a good one.**


	7. Chapter 7

"Sorry for this interruption, but could Ms. Lynn Loud please report to the main office? I repeat, could Lynn Loud report to the main office?"

Lynn pulled her head from her desk, looking at the loud speaker in surprise. Great, now what did she do? She couldn't think of anything… Did she fall asleep in chemistry again without realizing? She didn't think so…

She sighed, pulling herself from her desk, doing her best to ignore the snickers that came from her classmates. Just shut up already, you don't even know if I'm in trouble… Morons…

She moved past her classmates, keeping her head forward. She didn't have time for this dorks. She passed through the door, heading into the hall. Wonder what they wanted from her. She was fairly certain she didn't do anything wrong, as she had only been there today and yesterday. Perhaps Principal Green had some questions about Lincoln or maybe they found some proof as to whether Cristina did it or not.

It would definitely be nice to know. She had been trying to find Cristina's friend, Cookie all day, but didn't have a drop of luck. She even recruited Lincoln's two friends, Stella and Jordan, but still came up with no idea where to find her.

Lynn was honestly ready to give up and she hated quitting. She didn't really have a choice. There was always tomorrow, but they had planned to find her today. Lincoln was very adamant about talking to Cristina as soon as possible.

Lynn was still on the fence with the whole Cristina possibly being innocent, at least for the prank, but she had to admit, there was a lot of holes in this whole thing. There was definitely something bigger going on and as long as it involved Lincoln, Lynn was going to see it though till the end.

Even Stella and Jordan were unconvinced about Cristina and Lynn wasn't sure they even really cared to find out, but she was certain they didn't want to take any chances. Neither did Lynn. If someone had gone through all of this trouble just to hurt Lincoln, than only god knew what the heck they had planned next.

What Lynn did know however, is that whoever really was responsible would come to regret their choice to go after Lincoln. She would make sure that they paid… No matter what.

Lynn sighed, picking up a bit of speed. If the office needed her so badly, then why would they wait until this close to the end of the day to call on her? For heaven's sake she was in the back of the school…!

"Screw you, I don't have time for this. Now move, I need to get back to class."

Lynn's brows furrowed. Stella? What's going on?

"Oh come on Stells, can't you just hear me out?"

Lynn frowned. Rusty…? Didn't he stop hanging out with Lincoln and their friends? Why was he talking with Stella? Weirdo…

"No. I already told you, I'm not interested in dating you. Quite frankly, you're an ass. Now please, move, I'm busy."

Lynn grit her teeth, starting to look around, picking up her pace. The last thing anyone needed was a clingy kid hanging around… There… Lynn spotted the very annoyed Stella standing in front of a locker, glaring down at Rusty, who was grinning up at her with his hands on the locker, either side of her.

"Come on, let me buy you a Flippy after school. Me and some of the guys are going. I promise it will be fun."

Stella shook her head, glaring down at him. "I said no, now move your arms or I'll kick your butt."

Lynn couldn't see his face, but she did see his hands form fists, making her frown. He wouldn't… "Hey Stella, there you are. I've been looking everywhere for you."

Rusty jumped, spinning around. When he saw Lynn, his face hardened for a moment, but less than a second later it softened. "Oh hey Lynn, how's Lincoln? I've been meaning to stop by and say hello, but I just haven't gotten the chance. I haven't seen much of him over the summer."

Lynn gave him a guarded nod. She didn't know why, but she didn't like him. She never had, never will. From what she had seen of him and heard of him from Lincoln, he sounded like a bit of a perv… "Oh, you know, taking it all one day at a time. But this is Lincoln, nothing will keep him down. Even managed to get the blood out of his hair. Great timing for when he goes back to school next week."

Rusty's eye twitched a few times, but Lynn paid it no mind, just turning to give Stella a big smile. "So, did you find what I asked for? Margo has been asking me about it all day." Come on kid, play along and you can go back to class sooner.

Stella returned her smile, giving her a nod. "Oh yeah, I sure did. My grandmother knew just where to find one. I picked it up last night. It's in my locker right now if you want me to give it to you."

Lynn nodded, pulling an arm around Stella, starting to walk. "Great, Margo is going to flip when she sees it… Have a good day Rusty. I'll tell Lincoln you said hello."

She didn't wait to hear his reply, she just walked off with Stella, gently patting her back. "So I take it you didn't find her?"

Stella gave her head a slight shake. "No, sorry… Thanks by the way. Rusty isn't too bad most of the time, but today he's been super clingy. Kind of annoying. Most of the summer he just ignored me, Lincoln and the rest of our group, but since Lincoln's been out of school, he's been around me none stop. I don't know if he's worried about Lincoln or if he wants to kidnap me… It's creepy…"

Lynn nodded, glancing over her shoulder… Rusty was just standing there, watching them. Lynn turned her head back to Stella. Her skin was crawling. "Dude… Be careful around that one, I think he has a thing for you… Anyway, do you need me to walk you to your next class?"

Stella shook her head, pulling a folded piece of paper out of her pocket. "No thanks, I'm actually heading to the office to deliver a letter."

Lynn nodded, letting out an amused chuckle. "That's funny, I was just called to the office. I guess I get to walk you any way. You never know, some other kid might want to stop you to get your phone number. We should get you a stick. You can use it to beat them off."

Stella let out a snort, shaking her head. "I'm sure I'll be fine. I can handle Rusty. He's all talk… So, no luck with Cookie? That's a shame… Are you sure that talking to Cristina is a good idea? I mean, what if it's a trap? I mean, I'm sure Lincoln can handle himself and he will have you girls, but how do you know she won't try something?"

Lynn shrugged. "Look Stella, I know you are worried about Lincoln, we all are. Just trust him, okay? He wants to know the truth and I want to make sure he gets it. One way or another, Lincoln will get what he wants. Even if he has to sneak out and hunt her down on his own. He may be smart and a great planner, but his plans tend to go a bit…"

"Unexpectedly?"

Lynn nodded. "Yeah. That is why his older sisters and I are going to be going with him. That way, if something happens, we will be there to help him out of it."

Stella sighed, putting her head down. "Well, I hope it goes off without a hitch. Lincoln has had enough trouble this year to last fifty… I wish I could go… So does Jordan… But there is no way that our parents would let us. How did you convince yours to let you do this? They must have been hesitant about it."

Lynn awkwardly scratched her arm, looking around the hall. "Well… They don't technically know. We just told them that we were going to take Lincoln out of the house to cheer him up. Which is not a lie, just not the full truth."

Stella gave her a shocked look. "But aren't you worried that you will get in trouble? I mean, I get why you would do that, but…?"

Lynn just shrugged, not very concerned. "If we get caught we either get in trouble or we don't. I just want Lincoln to know that we have his back."

Stella nodded, slouching a little. "Yeah… I wish I could help…"

Lynn sighed, lifting a hand to pat her back. "Hey, don't worry. Just keep being Lincoln's friend and you will be doing plenty. Your friendship means a lot to him and… Well, it means a lot to me that you've continued to stick with him. Lincoln was really upset after Clyde moved and he was even more upset when he learned that the others wanted to stop talking to him."

Stella sighed, straightening. She gave Lynn a small smile, turning her head to look forward. "Thanks. Lincoln's friendship means a lot to me as well. He was my first friend when I moved here and he was the only person to stay my friend. Now that Jordan makes our friendship a trio, it isn't that bad, but still… Anyway, we are here."

Lynn blinked a couple of times before she realized what she meant. She turned her head, seeing that they were standing in front of the front office window. "Oh… Yeah… Well, I hope Rusty leaves you alone and if I don't see you again today, have a good one."

Stella nodded, holding her hand out to let Lynn pass. "Yeah, you too… And I'm sure I can handle Rusty. Tell Lincoln to call me after your meeting with Cristina. Well, that is if we can find her."

Lynn nodded, walking past her to the window. "Of course."

Lynn sighed as she stepped up to the window, waiting for the secretary to finish whatever it was that she was typing. "Hello, I'm Lynn Loud. The office called for me…"

The woman nodded, typing some more. "Ah yes, go right in the first side door and have a seat."

Lynn nervously tapped her finger on the counter. "Umm… If you don't mind me asking, why was I called here? Did I do something wrong?"

The woman shook her head, not bothering to look up at her. "Oh goodness no. A student asked if we could call you to the office. I guess she wanted to talk about something relating to your brother."

Lynn raised a brow. "Oh? Okay, thanks."

The woman gave Lynn and nod as she started for the office door. As she passed, Lynn gave a final wave to Stella. "See yah."

Lynn stepped to the door, grabbing the knob, turning it. Who would call her to the office? Maybe Jordan? But why not just text her? Wait… Unless… Lynn opened the door, walking into the room. Sitting at a table, towards the side of the room, was Cookie.

"Hello, you must be Lynn. I hear you have been looking for me. It's about time."

Lynn was slightly taken aback, surprised by this kid's bluntness. "You're telling me, I've been looking everywhere for you. We need to talk."

Cookie nodded, crossing her arms. "Yes, we do… Also, why didn't you just come to the office and have them call me up?"

Lynn sighed, mentally face palming. Give me a break would you? It's been a long day. Lynn started towards her, moving to sit in the chair next to her's "Never mind that, I need to know where Cristina is."

Cookie stiffened, moving to stand, but Lynn grabbed her arm, gently pulling her back down. "Calm down. It's for Lincoln. He just wants to talk. He thinks she might be innocent."

Cookie gave her a shocked look, visually relaxing, though not fully. "Really? How do I know I can trust you? When she tried to talk to his little sisters yesterday, they nearly bit her head off. Well, them and that Haiku girl. What if I lead you all to her and either you or Lincoln try to get revenge?"

Lynn sighed. Cookie did have valid points, but she wasn't in the mood for games. "Listen, we don't have time for this. Either tell me or I will just walk out that door and pretend that I didn't see you. That way, it will be your fault that Cristina got into trouble."

Cookie frowned, nervously rubbing her arms. "Look… I'm sorry about what happened to Lincoln, he didn't deserve that… But neither did Cristina. Her entire life was ruined over the course of a few short hours. All of her friends, her family, for heaven's sake, even her parents have treated her as nothing but garbage since. I'm her only friend, the only person that believes her. If I lead you to her and you hurt her, I would be abandoning her… I can't do that."

Lynn sighed, forcing herself to relax. "I can respect that, but if you want her to even have a chance at her old life, you are going to have to bring us to her. I would say to just bring her to my house, but Lori, our oldest sister, won't allow it… I promise, even if she did do it, we won't hurt her. Lincoln wouldn't let us. Hell, he was the one that convinced me to even come here to talk with you. If I didn't believe that there could be even the slightest chance that she didn't do it, I wouldn't have even come. I would have just let her rot in her own misery… But once Lincoln told me all of his reasons for thinking she was innocent, I couldn't help but to agree… He's a really convincing person. I don't even know why he would care. I don't know if it's because he subconsciously still has some kind of feeling for her or if it's just Lincoln's usual sweat nature, but he's convinced she might be innocent. Please, for the sake of your friend, don't throw away this chance. She won't have another."

Cookie bit her lip and started to nervously tap her fingers against her arm, giving Lynn a thoughtful look. "This doesn't give me much time to think… And I doubt you will give me time to discuss this with Cristina… _Sigh…_ Fine… I will take you to her after school… But, only if you and whoever else stays outside until Cristina is certain you won't try to hurt her. Until then, only myself and Lincoln will go in, is that fair? …"

Lynn frowned, thinking it over. "I don't know if Lori and the others will like that… But I guess it would make her more comfortable… I'll tell you what, if you let me stand five feet behind Lincoln the entire time, we can call this a deal. Fair?"

Cookie bit her lip harder, but stopped her finger tapping. "I… I… O.. Okay. As long as I can stand between Lincoln and Cristina…"

Lynn nodded, holding her hand out. "Deal."

Cookie nodded, shakily bringing her hand out to take Lynn's, shaking it. "D..deal…"

Lynn sighed, watching as Cookie's lip started to tremble slightly. Poor girl was terrified… "Hey, it's going to be fine. You believe she is innocent, right?"

Cookie nodded, letting Lynn's hand go. "Y..yeah. I do. Cristina has done a lot of stupid things, a lot of them involving treating Lincoln like crap… But I'm certain she will never do anything to upset Lincoln again. I think she really regrets what she said to him and the fact that she avoided him like the plague. I don't even think she hates him anymore. She just wants to move on."

Lynn sighed, giving her a small smile. "Good, that is what Lincoln wants. I'm sure this whole thing is going to go very well…"

* * *

"Tat tat tat tat…"

Cookie vigorously tapped her foot while she waited for Lincoln and the rest of his sisters to arrive. The waiting was killing her.

"Hey kid, relax. You're going to wear a hole in your shoe if you don't."

Cookie looked up at Lynn, biting her lip. "Sorry, I'm just nervous…" She sighed, tightening her grip on the paper bag she had been keeping in her locker since that morning. She had hoped to find Lynn and just give it to her to give to Lincoln, but nope, those plans had changed. She was rather surprised as to how nervous she really was to see Lincoln again.

"Don't worry, I'm sure Lincoln is just as nervous… So… Are two friends or something? You and Lincoln that is?"

Cookie nervously shook her head. She still wasn't convinced that Lynn wasn't going to beat the crap out of her. She heard a lot of people say that the whole Loud family was insane, but Lynn was supposed to be the worst… Then again, Lincoln was pretty nice… Actually, he was one of the nicest people she knew…

"N..no, not really… We don't really talk much…"

Lynn nodded, giving her a curious look. "Are you alright? You should really relax."

Cookie nodded, trying to stop her foot from shaking. "Y..Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just… This is a lot to take in, okay?"

Lynn turned to her, lifting her hand towards Cookie, making her flinch. Lynn's hand rested on her shoulder, making her heart beat faster, but when Lynn dropped to one knee, giving her a serious look, she thought she was going to pass out.

"Hey, I'm not going to hurt you, I just want to make sure you are alright. I promise, we will not hurt you or attack Cristina… Maybe we should just call this off. You could go and see Cristina and let her know we want to talk with her and then we can all decide were the best place to meet would be."

Cookie shook her head, forcing herself to relax. "No, it fine. We already decided what we would do… I'm sorry, you really aren't any think like the other's say."

Lynn raised, giving her a confused look. "What? What others? What did they say?"

Cookie sighed, crossing her arms over her chest. Lynn didn't seem very mean… "I was always told that Lincoln's sisters are all wild and crazy, but you don't seem mean to me. You just seem like a really protective sister. I guess I'm just not sure what to think."

Lynn blinked at her a few times, making Cookie feel nervous that she had offended her, she was a much larger girl after all… But then Lynn's eyes softened and she dropped down on her other knee, leaning back. "I understand. Look, I do tend to get a bit… Over the top when I'm playing sports or if it's a competition, but this neither. This is serious and very important. This could either ruin or fix your friend's life and I'm not really into ruining lived. I will admit if I do find out that she did it, which seems highly unlikely right now, I won't do anything to her or you. Lincoln doesn't want any once else getting hurt and he just wants to move on. And quite frankly, I think moving on is the best idea. I think you are very brave for agreeing to this meeting and you should be proud of yourself for standing by your friend, even if nobody else did. That takes some serious guts. It's pretty impressive."

Cookie nodded, feeling her face heat up. She wasn't used to getting complimented like that… It was nice… She decided that Lynn was nice too and she could trust her. Lynn wasn't a bully… "Thanks… Someone had to stand by her, especially when not even her parents would."

Lynn frowned, raising a brow. "This is the second time you mentioned this. Did they do something to anger you? They didn't hit her did they?"

Cookie shook her head, not sure of the best way to answer that question. "No, they didn't hit her and well… Technically they didn't do anything. They plan to take away a lot of her things when they get back, but the thing that really upsets me is that they wouldn't let her tell her side of the story. They just accepted Principal Green's world and let it at that. She feels like they abandoned her… Which I guess they kind of did…"

Lynn furrowed her brows, looking concerned. "What do you mean by that?"

Cookie sighed, biting her lip again… It was starting to hurt… "Well… I'm not sure if I should tell anyone, but they went on a business trip a few days ago and won't be back until the end of the week. Cristina has been alone since I walked her home yesterday after not getting to meet Lincoln. Frankly, I think she's terrified of what every punishment they have for her and I don't blame her, they were really angry."

Lynn shook her head, looking up as a car honked it's horn. "That is very unfair. The very least they should have done was to listen to her. I wouldn't blame her if she was angry at them. What jerks… Well, they are here. Hopefully if we can clear her name, we can knock some sense into her parent's heads too."

Cookie nodded and Lynn stood, giving her a gentle pat on her shoulder. "Yeah… I hope so. She doesn't deserve any of this." She let out a long, nervous sigh as a rundown van pulled to a stop in front of them. There were four other, older girls sitting in the front and back seats, while Lincoln sat in the middle alone. The thing that really caught her eye though, was the fact that Lincoln's hair was white… And not just the paper white she thought she remembered, but for some reason it seemed whiter, like freshly fallen snow… Or like a cute little rabbit had decided to use his head for a pillow… Wait… Cute? Those words never belonged in the same thought. Lincoln was a lot of things, but cute was not one of them… But she did have to admit, she was starting to hate that stupid smile a lot less. It was a lot better than that dreadful sad look he had before…

* * *

Lincoln reached across the seats, opening the van's door, smiling at Lynn and Cookie. He didn't want to give her the impression that they were going to cause any trouble… Also, he was just in a good mood. He was finally going to get the chance to talk things through with Cristina.

Of course he was still nervous about it and he was still upset with her. He was just tired of being angry or sad. It was all going to end and it started today. It was as simple as that.

Lincoln watched as Cookie looked up at him, giving him a nervous smile and a small wave. "Hey Lincoln… Your hair looks great."

Lincoln ran a hand through his hair before patting the seat next to him. "Thanks, come and sit. We really need to talk."

Cookie nodded, losing her smile, making Lincoln sigh. "It's okay, I'm not angry at you. I just want to talk. That is all I want to do with you or Cristina. There is nothing to worry about."

Cookie nodded, turning her head to look at Lynn. In response, Lynn gave her a kind smile and brought a hand up to pat her back. "It's okay. You know Lincoln isn't going to hurt you right? I mean, this is Lincoln, he doesn't have a mean bone in his body."

Cookie nodded once more before pulling herself into the van, sliding to sit next to Lincoln. After buckling her seatbelt, she turned to look at Lincoln, biting her lip. "S..so what do you want to talk about? Wouldn't it be better to wait until we get to Cristina's?"

Lincoln shook his head. He had to admit, he was surprised with how nervous Cookie was and the fact that her cheeks were a deepening shade of pink. "Don't worry, it's just a few questions so I can learn things from your point of view… Are you okay? You're not feeling unwell are you?"

Cookie shook her head, tightening her grip on a paper bag she was holding in her hands. "No, I'm feeling fine… I'm just, you know…?"

Lincoln nodded, trying to give her a comforting smile. Why was she so nervous? She didn't do anything and all he wanted to do was talk to Cristiana. "Nervous?" Cookie nodded and Lincoln let out a sigh. "Me too. The last time I felt this nervous was when I accidentally knocked Lori's phone into the toilet. I thought for sure she was going to turn me into a human pretzel… But then it turned out she had just boughten a new water proof case."

Cookie seemed to relax a little at that, giving Lincoln a small chuckle. "That must have been a relief."

Lincoln snorted, looking at Lori in the front seat. "Not really, she made me buy a new one for her. Though… I did get a new case for my phone, so I guess it did work out. Oh, that is after I washed it… So, really, how are you feeling about this whole thing?"

Cookie let out a long sigh and he turned back to look at her. Lori started to pull out of the school parking lot. "I'm fine I guess. Mostly I'm just worried about you and Cristina. I'm really glad your hair is as white as ever, if not more so. You definitely look way better with white hair, it makes your smile shine… Err… I mean…"

Lincoln raised a brow at her and a couple of his sisters started to laugh, making Cookie blush. "It's okay, I like it white too… So how is Cristina doing? I heard she tried to get Lucy or Haiku to tell her where I lived."

Cookie nodded, looking down at her hands, fiddling with the bag in her hand. "She's… Not doing so well. And… Please don't be angry at her for trying to talk to you. She really wasn't going to do anything to your little sisters. I know she can be a bit dense at times, but she really is a good person, I swear. She just made a stupid mistake…"

"A stupid mistake? She treated him like shit for almost a year. She was a bully and you know it."

Lincoln turned to look behind him, shaking his head at Luna, making her frown, crossing her arms. "Please Luna, don't upset her. She didn't do anything. It was Cristina, not her… But, you do have a fair point. Cristina either avoided me like a plague or straight up told me how much she hated me. What would suddenly change her now?"

Lincoln turned back to look at Cookie, sighing. "Please, continue. Why isn't she having a good time? Did something happen?"

Cookie nodded, looking at Lincoln with a sad frown. "Yeah, all of her friends told her to screw herself and her parents refuse to use their brains. They were told that she did the prank and they just accepted it without even a single thought. They wouldn't let Cristina explain her side of the story and just started to punish her. It isn't fair, I swear she didn't do this."

Lincoln gave her a thoughtful look. He did have a hard time believing a few of the things she was saying… But he couldn't prove her wrong. He would just have to wait to talk to Cristina herself… Wait… Proof…

"I see… Can you or Cristina prove that she didn't do it? If we have proof, we can start trying to figure out who really did it. Then they can be punished and no one else has to get pranked or hurt."

Cookie opened her mouth, but quickly closed it. "I… I… I can't answer that question… I mean, no don't think we have proof, but… I… err… I'm sorry, you might want to wait until after you talk to Cristina for that question… I'm sorry…"

Lincoln gave her a confused look. Something wasn't right about her answer.

"What do you mean you can't answer that question? Are you hiding something?"

Lincoln looked towards the front of the van as Lori pulled to the side of the road, glaring at Cookie through the rear view mirror. "Lori, please don't…"

Lori shook her head, turning to face them. "No. I don't even know where I'm going. Spill kid, where is Cristina and why are you trying to avoid questions?"

Cookie flinched, pulling her arms around herself, looking like she was starting to freak out a little. "Please… I already told you guys I was going to bring you to Cristina, please don't get angry with me… I promise we will explain when we get there, I just think you should hear Cristina's side first. Otherwise, it won't make sense."

"You know who did it, don't you?"

Lincoln turned his head, giving Lynn and Cookie and surprised look. "What?"

Cookie's face paled as she looked at Lynn. "Please don't be mad. I swear we were going to tell you guys, we just don't have any proof yet. After Cristina explains everything, you will understand. I swear, we weren't trying to hide it, is just wouldn't make sense."

Lynn gave her a look that Lincoln couldn't read, making him nervous. "Guys, calm down. There is no reason to get upset. Scaring Cookie will do nothing but make her uncomfortable. We need to trust her and we need her to trust us. Let's just give her some…"

"DAMN IT Lincoln, HOW CAN YOU BE SO FUCKING CALM?"

Lincoln flinched as Lori yelled at him. He opened his mouth to reply, but he was interrupted.

"DON'T YELL AT HIM, HE DIDN'T DO ANYTHING WRONG."

Lincoln sighed. This was what he wanted to avoid… "Please stop yelling…"

"OF COURSE HE DIDN'T AND APARENTLY NEITHER DID CRISTINA… OH WAIT, SHE'S BEEN TREATING HIM LIKE SHIT FOR A YEAR…"

Lincoln was getting irritated and he could feel Cookie stiffening next to him. She was getting uncomfortable. He spotted Lynn trying to get her to relax… it wasn't working.

"Guys…"

"STOP TREATING HIM LIKE A BABY, HE'S IN MIDDLE SCHOOL NOW, HE CAN TAKE CARE OF HIMSELF"

Lincoln sighed, bringing his hands to his face. This wasn't how this was supposed to happen…

"APARENTLY HE CAN'T. HE'S NOT READY FOR THIS KIND OF…"

"SHUT YOUR DAMN MOUTHS! STOP TELLING ME WHAT I AM OR AM NOT. JUST STOP, I CAN'T TAKE THIS SHIT ANY MORE."

The yelling stopped. Everyone just stared at Lincoln in shock. He was heavily panting, his face red from yelling. "Just stop. You want to know something? I'm not calm. I'm not okay. I'm tired. I just want you to stop yelling. I want Cookie to stop getting yelled at. She didn't do anything wrong. She just wants us to be patient for a little while longer. Is that really too much to ask for? No? Good, just shut up and listen. We are going to listen to Cookie while she tells us where to go. We will drive there, we will stay calm and we will listen to what they both have to say. Then and only then will we make our final judgment. No one will try to scare Cookie anymore and no one will touch Cristina. We will find out who did this, and then they will be punished. Does that sound like a fair plan?"

Everyone remained silent, just giving Lincoln shocked nods. He sighed, feeling like a jerk. "I'm sorry… I didn't mean to yell. I just want to put this behind us and move on." He turned to Cookie, sighing when he saw how rattled she looked. Even Lynn looked a bit frazzled behind her. "Sorry Cookie, you don't have to tell us anything you are uncomfortable with sharing. We can wait until we get to Cristina's. Could you please tell us where she lives?"

She nodded, her eyes rapidly moving from Lincoln to Lori. "Uhh… Yeah, sure thing. Just head down this road until you get to…

* * *

Cookie felt really awkward. The van was dead silent other then the occasional direction she gave to Lincoln's oldest sister. She felt really nervous now. She had never seen someone go through such a dramatic mood shift as Lincoln had a few minutes ago. He was so calm and collected, but as soon as his sisters started to freak out, he became really scary. She didn't ever want to be on the receiving end of that… His sisters even seemed unsettled by it, making her think that this was a new thing… He must be way more stressed then he let on…

She sighed, looking at him out o the corner of her eyes. He was so calm again… It was really weird… Man… What the heck happened to you? And she thought Cristina was upset…

"Hey, are you okay? I hope my sisters or I didn't upset you with our yelling. I promise we don't usually act like this. I'm sure you understand how stressful this is for all of us."

Cookie turned her head, looking at Lincoln… And now he was being really sweet… "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a bit nervous I guess. I didn't mean to make your sisters angry at me, I just think it would be best to hear it from the source, you know?"

Lincoln nodded, giving her a curious look. "I understand… But I also understand where my sisters are coming from. I mean, I would love to know who started this mess, but I will respect your choice to let Cristina explain everything herself… I want to thank you for trusting us. I am still mad a Cristina and she definitely has things she needs to answer for, but this whole thing has been blown way out of proportion. I'm sorry that you have been dragged into the middle of it."

Cookie sighed, looking at the bag in her hands. "You don't need to apologize. I'm sure I would have reacted a lot worse than both of you if I was in the same situation… I made something for you."

Lincoln gave her a curious look, making her blush. "It's nothing much, I just wanted to see you cheer up a little. You looked really sad after that stupid prank and I wanted to see you smile again. I know this is probably a terrible time to give you this, but it's better than never… Here…"

Cookie handed him the bag, making her heat up more as she felt everyone's eyes on her. "I know it doesn't make things right between you and Cristina and I know you and I don't exactly have a strong friendship… I'm not even sure if you consider me a friend at all… I just hope you like them…"

Cookie looked at her empty hands, listening to Lincoln unwrap the bag.

"…"

"Cookies? You made me cookies? I love cookies. Thanks Cookie… Wow… that was an interesting sentence… Anyway, thanks… Oh… And there Chocolate Chip? I could kiss you right now…"

Cookie felt her face catch flame as Lincoln started to munch on a cookie. She didn't know why, it was only a joke… But it made her feel really good… And of course the chuckling of Lincoln's sisters didn't help… Cristina you really lost out on an interesting guy…

"Wow, I think these are the best cookies I've ever had. I want to share, but my sisters would probably just eat them all… I'm kidding, who wants a cookie?"

Cookie shook her head, trying to hold back her smile. What a dork… WHAT…?

Her thoughts were cut off and her eyes widened as Lincoln leaned over, giving her a quick, yet comforting hug. "Really, thanks. I feel a lot better after these. Where did you learn to make cookies like these?"

Cookie reached a hand up, pulling at the neck of her shirt. "Oh, my mother and I used to bake cookies all the time. After she got her most recent job, we didn't have as much time to bake, so I started to bake on my own so she could have cookies in her lunch… I guess I just make them so often they just started to get better and better… Do you really like them?"

Lincoln nodded, holding a cookie out to her. "Yeah, I was serious about them being the best cookies I've ever had… Nobody tell dad, but these are way better than his. I love the fact that you have both chunks of chocolate and the chips."

Cookie sighed, taking the cookie, biting into it. Why couldn't things stay like this? What if they could? What if she could get Lincoln and his sisters to forgive Cristina and get them to be friends? She could make them all cookies… Yeah, she would just have to help them get rid of Rusty and the other two jerks…

She looked up just in time to see that they were coming onto Cristina's house, so she raised her hand, using her index finger to point at the house. "That's were Cristina lives. You can park at the curb… Guys… Please be patient with her. She's under a lot of stress too."

She felt a hand on her shoulder, making her turn her head towards Lynn. She was giving her a smile. "Don't worry kid, I told you we would keep our agreement. You will go first, then Lincoln and I'll follow five feet behind. The others will stay with the van. If Cristina is okay with it, they can come, if she is not, they will stay… Isn't that right?"

"Yes Lynn, we've been over this."

Cookie let out an amused sigh. These people really were crazy… But not in the way people had always talked about them. Especially Lynn and Lincoln. Lynn was a bit odd and could be intimidating, but she obviously had a real soft spot for Lincoln… and Lincoln… She wasn't really sure what to think about him. She had always seen him as a bit of a dork that smiled way to much… Now she realized he was actually a sweet kid that was just super misunderstood. That actually made her feel really stupid… Maybe she could make him more cookies to help make up for it… of course, helping them with their problem with Cristina would help too…

"Alright, let's go. We need to be home before five or mom and dad will get suspicious. Also, when should we drop you off Cookie?"

Cookie looked up at Lori, sighing. "Oh, umm… Well I told my parents I would be hanging out with Cristina for the day and I can just walk home. I actually only live a mile or so from here. We actually passed my house on our way here."

Lori gave her a nod before opening her door and stepping out. "Okay, just let me know if you change your mind and need me to drop you off on our way home."

Cookie nodded, unbuckling her seatbelt. She wasn't really sure what to think of her or Lincoln's other older sisters. They had a bit of a temper and were very loud, but they didn't seem that bad… But Lori did seem to be a bit too over protective of Lincoln and she was pretty sure she didn't like her or Cristina at all… Really, she could blame her. She just hoped she could change their mind about Cristina. Sure she didn't always use her head, but she really was a great person.

"You coming Cookie?"

She looked over at Lincoln, who was holding the door for her, while holding his hand out towards the outside. She nodded, managing to stifle a grin. Wow, what a dork… And a gentle man…

She slid across the seat, hopping out as she got to the end. Lynn quickly following. "Thanks Lincoln."

He nodded, giving her a small smile. "Of course… You nervous?"

Cookie nodded. "Yeah. What about you?"

Lincoln nodded, closing the door after his last sister stepped out. "Terrified. I'm not good with conflict. Hopefully we can avoid conflict completely and talk this through like civilized humans."

Cookie nodded, looking towards the house. "Indeed… Come on, let's go. She probably already knows we are here… I just hope she isn't mad I didn't call first… I didn't even think of it…"

"Okay, just lead the way and Lynn and I will follow."

Cookie sighed, starting towards the house. She really hoped this would go over well. The last think any of them needed was more stress. She just hoped Lincoln wasn't too angry at Cristina. If he…

"Mommy…"

Cookie froze and Lincoln bumped into her, nearly knocking her down. "What was…?" Cookie trailed off, her eyes glued to the ground by her feet… Something was wrong.

"Hey, why did you… Is that blood?"

Lincoln said something in responce, but Cookie didn't wait to listen. She just headed for the front door. No no no… Please tell me that it's not… Cookie froze, feeling her heart skip a beat. The cookie she had just finished felt like lead in her stomach as it churned. Oh no no no… "Cristina?"

Before her, sitting against the bloodied front door, was Cristina. Her face was bruised, her nose was crooked with blood steadily streaming from it. She was bare foot. Both feet were bleeding, but one was swollen and bruised… and her hand… She was holding her hand to herself. It was badly bruised and very swollen… And her clothes… They were ruined and soaking wet…

As Cristina's eyes focused on Cookie, they filled with relief and hope, but it quickly changed to horror as a voice spoke from behind.

"Cookie, what the heck is going on? Where is… Oh my god…"

As soon as Cristina saw Lincoln she burst into tears and tried to scoot away, starting to hyperventilate. "No, no… Please, I didn't do it… Please don't' hurt me… Please… I beg you… I'm sorry, I'll never… I'll never… I promised I won't go near you again… I'll drop out of school… I'll run away, just please don't hurt me… Please, I promised… I promised…"

Cookie snapped out of her horrified daze, dashing for Cristina. As she reached the steps, she could hear Lincoln yelling for someone to call an ambulance. She paid little attention, she just had to go to her friend. "Calm down, calm down. Cristina, I promise Lincoln isn't going to hurt you, just calm down."

Cristina either didn't hear her or didn't care to. She just kept trying to crawl away, rolling onto her stomach, leaving trails of blood everywhere. Cookie dropped to her knees next to her, trying to keep her from moving. "Stop moving! You are making the bleeding worse. Cristina, stop, you are safe."

Cristina shook her head, spewing out unintelligible cries. Cookie was starting to freak out, if she didn't get her to stop moving, she was going to hurt herself even worse.

"Hold her by her shoulders, I'll take her legs."

Cookie nodded, feeling tears will in her eyes, rolling down her cheeks. What the hell was happening? Why did this happen? Who?

Cookie shook her head, placing her hands on Cristina's shoulders, firmly pressing her down. She could worry about that crap later, right now she had more important things to worry about. "CRISTINA STOP MOVING!"

That seemed to do the trick… Either that or it was the fact that Lincoln was literally holding her down by the legs… Yeah, that seemed to be more likely what it was, as her eyes were wide with terror, her breathing coming out in panicked gasps.

"Cristina, please listen to me. You are safe. I will not hurt you. We are going to get you help. Do you understand?"

Cristina didn't reply, making Lincoln sigh behind Cookie.

"Cristina, I promise I will not hurt you. You are safe. You are among friends, we will not hurt you…"

Cristina's breathing was getting faster, making Cookie panic. Please… Please…

"Cristina, I know it wasn't you that did the prank. I know you were set up… Cristina I forgive you."

That did it. Cookie watched in amazement as Cristina's eyes focused behind her, then quickly switched to look at Cookie, then back to Lincoln. "Y..Y…You do?"

Cookie looked at Lincoln over her shoulder. His face was dead serious… But she could also see anger growing in his eyes and she had a strong feeling that it wasn't towards Cristina.

"Yes, I do. Please, try to relax. Can you tell me what happened?"

Cookie looked back at Cristina. Her eyes started to unfocus again, but she seemed to relax a bit when Cookie moved one of her hands to take her's. "It's okay Cristina, just tell them everything."

Cristina shook her head, shaking as she sobbed. "I… I… I can't… They'll hit me again… I can't… Please don't make me… Please, I don't want to…"

Cookie choked on her own cry. This wasn't the Cristina she knew and loved… This was a terrified little girl… And Cookie was the very pissed off best friend to this girl. She turned to Lincoln, giving him an angry look. "This has gone to far… I'm sorry Cristina, this has to end. Lincoln, the people who hurt you and Cristina are…"

Cristina's hand wrapped around Cookie's face, clamping over her mouth. "No… Please, they'll hurt him… They'll hurt me… They are going to kill him if he knows… He'll be really angry… Please…"

Cookie tried to pull away, but Cristina held her down with a surprising amount of strength. What ever Rusty and the others did to her, it obviously scared her to death…

Lincoln suddenly leaned in, his eyes aflame with anger… and yet he spoke with a calming voice. "Cristina, Cookie… I'm sorry that you have both been dragged into this. Please tell me who did this. I know you are scared, but you don't need to be. Once you tell us who did this, we will call the police and have them arrested. Pranking me was a sick joke, but what they did to you was just evil. Tell me Cristina…"

She shook her head, crying harder.

Lincoln's breathing was starting to get heavier, making Cookie nervous… Oh no… Not again…

"Cristina, tell me."

No response…

"Cristina, Tell Me…"

Still nothing…

"CRISTINA, TELL ME NOW!"

"IT WAS RUSTY, BOY JORDAN AND PAIGE WHO PRANKED YOU. RUSTY AND BOY JORDAN ALONG WITH THEIR NEW FRIENDS HIT ME… PLEASE… Please… I'm sorry, don't hurt me…"

Cookie glared at Lincoln in anger. Why the hell would he do that? Lincoln was nothing but a no good… Huh…?

Cookie's eyes widened as Lincoln leaned down, wrapping his arms around them both, tears flowing from his eyes as he pulled them both into a hug. "I'm sorry I yelled… Are you sure it was them? Just nod and I will believe you."

Both Cristina and Cookie nodded, making Lincoln sigh. "I see… I can't believe… Why would…? But Rusty is my friend… Fine…"

Lincoln pulled away from them, sitting up. He gave them a sad look before he turned his back, placed his face in his hands and sobbed. It truly broke his heart… Cookie could see it in his eyes… That look was a hundred times worse than the one he wore after the prank… It was something that would be stuck in her mind as she slept for the rest of her life… Right alongside the sight of her usually strong and sassy friend broken and bleeding. She had a feeling she wouldn't be sleeping for a while…

* * *

**I piss myself off. I hurt Cristina way too much. This chapter hurt to write. I'm sorry…**


	8. Chapter 8

Pain, scared, tried… These were only a few of the things that Cristina felt… But the one thing that stood out the most in her pounding head, was confusion. She kept running the same questions through her head, trying to understand what was going on or at least, what had happened. Like, why was she so stupid? Why did she have to be the one? Where were her parents? Did they even care? Where were her clothes? Why was is always so cold in hospitals? When would she be able to sleep? Why was Lincoln staring at her?

It wasn't even in a creepy way, it was like he was genuinely worried about her… But why? Didn't he hate her? He did say he forgave her, but was that an act to get her to relax? Did he really believe her that Rusty and the others were the ones to do this to them? And what of Paige? She confused her the most. First she's a bully, then she tried to get Rusty and the others to stop hurting her and then she told her how sorry she was… Cristina didn't know what to think anymore…

She just wanted to go home…

"Cristina?"

She looked up to see a woman walking into the room. She wore a white lab coat and one of those things doctors use to listen to people's heart and breathing. She didn't want to talk to another doctor…

"Hello dear, my name is Doctor Sara Combs. I'd like to ask you some questions."

Cristina sighed, hugging her arms around her chest. She was tired of doctors. This had to be the fifth one she had seen since she had gotten there and that didn't even count the ones that put on her casts or put in the stitches or the one that splint her nose… She hated hospitals. She wanted to go home.

"I've already explained everything to the last four doctors and the police."

The doctor sighed, lifting a clipboard. "I'm aware. We just need to know a few more things. Are you up to answering a few more question? I'll bring you and your two friends some ice cream afterward. I promise it will be quick."

Cristina sighed. She didn't want to answer any more questions… But she wouldn't mind some ice cream… She hoped they had vanilla… "Fine."

"Okay, first off, do you feel safe right now? I know this is a loaded question, but it has come to my attention that this boy is the one that you were accused of hurting. Do you feel threatened by him and if so, would you like him to be sent to the waiting room with his sisters?"

Cristina frowned, looking at Lincoln. She wasn't sure about him… But he and his sisters were the ones that had her brought to the hospital… And he didn't seem angry at her… It could be a trick… But Lincoln didn't seem like that kind of person… Then again… She didn't really know what kind of person he was… He did seem nice…

"How about I make the decision? That way you can just focus on getting better."

Lincoln stood from his seat next to Cookie, starting for the door.

"No, wait… Stay…"

Cristina didn't know who was more surprised, herself or Lincoln. She hadn't realized that she had been the one to speak, until Lincoln turned to look at her, raising a brow. "Are you sure? I don't want to make you uncomfortable."

Cristina felt like trash. He really did seem like he didn't want to hurt her… In fact, she couldn't think of a single time that she had heard of him even raising a hand against someone… And he had been really nice to her since they had found her… She was so stupid… She really misjudged him…

"Y..Yeah. I don't want to be alone…" Lincoln nodded, slowly moving back to his spot next to Cookie. They both let out sighs, continuing to watch her… It was true that Cristina didn't want to be alone. But Cookie was there. She hadn't left her side once. But she still felt better with another person there. She really owned them both. Cookie for sticking with her though out this whole mess and Lincoln for… Well, she owned him a lot…

"So… Is that a yes? About feeling safe?"

Cristina looked back at the doctor, sighing. "Yes, I feel safe." Okay, maybe not fully, but she wasn't going to say that.

"Alright… So right here it says that you told the police that the boys that attacked you threatened to strip you down to your underwear. Did they ever at any point touch you in anyway sexually?"

Cristina's face heated up and she awkwardly hugged herself tighter. "No. They pulled at my skirt and tore it, but they never touched… You know..."

Doctor Combs nodded, writing something down. "I see… That is good… Oh, here you said that the only girl in the group forced you to kiss her, is this true and would you consider this as sexual assault?"

Cristina started to pull at her hospital gown. It was suddenly a lot hotter… Perhaps she should have let Lincoln leave. He looked just as embarrassed as she felt. "Yes she kissed me… But I wouldn't say she assaulted me… It was mostly just kind of gross… Why are you asking these questions? I was punched and kicked. Paige didn't even lay a finger on me today. She was actually the one that got them to stop hurting me. She sounded horrified about the whole thing. I don't think she wanted to hurt anyone, she just wanted to play a prank on Lincoln."

The doctor nodded, once again writing. "I see… Well, this is good. At least we don't need to do a rape kit… Now, about these other two kids, could you describe them?"

"Are you serious? I'm sorry, you are an idiot."

Cristina felt weird. She didn't like this… She wasn't raped, so why would they ask about it?

"Excuse me?"

Cristina didn't like any of this… She pulled her legs up to her chest, pulling her gown tightly to herself. They wouldn't have tried to rape her… Right? What if Paige hadn't been there?

"You can't just drop that kind of thing on her. She was scared before, now look at her. Nobody ever mentioned that to any of you, so why scare her?"

Cristina felt like she was going to be sick…

"Listen young man, if you don't calm down, I'm going to have to ask you to leave. I have to ask these questions. It is protocol. Anyone that comes in with these kinds of injuries has the potential of having been…"

Cristina felt bile rise in her throat… "I'm going to be sick…"

Immediately, both Lincoln and Cookie rushed to her as she sat forward. They slid onto the bed next to her, trying to calm her. Cookie grabbed her water, holding it towards her, while Lincoln started to rub her back, pulling her hair from her face.

"Don't just stand there, get her something to puke it."

Cristina didn't know what to do… Her stomach felt like it was doing cartwheels…

"Here, take a couple of small sips of water. Just make sure to drink slowly."

Cristina nodded, accepting the straw as Cookie brought the water to her mouth. She took small sips… It helped a tiny bit…

"It's going to be okay Cris. We are here for you. Don't listen to that jerk, she doesn't know what she's talking about. Nobody is going to hurt you anymore."

Cristina nodded, letting Cookie pull the cup from her. "Y…Y..You don't think… That they were… Going to… You know…?"

Lincoln leaned in, pressing his head against her's. "No, absolutely not. Rusty is a lot of things, a perv being one of them, but I doubt even he would stoop that low. Nobody was going to hurt you like that and nobody will. I promise you that would never happen. That will never happen. Cookie is right, she shouldn't have asked you that."

"Here, use this if you think you are going to be sick… I'm sorry I scared you, that was not my intention… I'll just… leave you three… I'll have some ice cream brought to you…"

Cristina looked down at her feet. She didn't know what to do… Everything hurt, she was scared… And now she was even more confused than before…

Wha…?

Cristina felt something move through her hair. It took her a few moments to realize what was going on. Lincoln had pulled her hair band out and had started to comb through it with his fingers. At first it was a little weird, but after a few moments… It actually started to feel pretty good…

She started to relax. It was really weird being this close to Lincoln, but at the moment, any thought of him hating her was out the window. And with Cookie starting to rub her upset tummy… She was starting to feel… Safe…

* * *

Lincoln let out a tired yawn. It had been a long and very stressful day… He looked at the snoozing Cristina laying between him and Cookie, letting out a sigh. Poor girl didn't deserve any of this. She didn't do anything wrong… Well, she had been an ass to him, but that seemed tiny compared to what had happened to her.

He just hoped she realized that he had been serious about forgiving her. He didn't like to hold grudges even in the worst of times and honestly, he just wanted to help her move past this all… His eyes narrowed as he looked down at the hand Cookie was holding. It was in a cast. He guessed her hand hadn't actually broke, it was just a nasty sprain…

That was one grudge he didn't plan on letting go.

He didn't know what the heck Rusty's problem was with him, as far as he knew, they were friends. As for Boy Jordan… he couldn't even remember the last time he had talked to him. He could just barely picture his face. And Paige… That one confused him. They may have had… Something in the past, as he at one point had a bit of a crush on her and sent her a couple of love letters. After she quite rudely denied him, he moved on, figuring she would just forget about him like most of his other failed attempts at romance… Perhaps he offended her? But what did Cristina have to do with any of this?

He looked up at her face, frowning. She had a nose splint in and her face had several stitches, along with a few small bandages. She looked miserable…

She sighed in her sleep, her face scrunching in pain…

That only made him angrier. From what he understood, Rusty wasn't even the one that started hurting her, it was some random kid that was with him. Apparently the moron had it in his head that beating the hell out of Cristina was in some way for Lincoln. Lincoln didn't even know who it was. If they knew even the smallest amount about Lincoln, then they would have known that that was the last thing Lincoln would have wanted. Not to mention that the jerk wanted to strip Cristina down to her underwear and tie her to the flag pole at school…

The more he thought about those jerks, the angrier he got. And then there was the fact that Rusty poured the Flippy on her. As if beating her wasn't enough, might as well add insult to injury as well, right? And then there was Paige…

Something about her didn't seem right. She just didn't just didn't fit into the puzzle. She started out as a jerk, but ended up being the one that stopped Cristina from getting hurt worse…

Lincoln blinked away the thought. He didn't want to imagine her getting hurt any worse… Then a sudden thought came to mind. Why did Paige kiss Cristina? Did she like girls? That would help explain why she decided to nail Lincoln in the groin… Though, if she wasn't interested, she could have just said no…

Lincoln took another look at Cristina, giving her a thoughtful look. If Paige did like girls, maybe she had a thing for Cristina? That could be why she didn't want her to get hurt… Or maybe Paige just had a change of heart. After all, it was one thing to play a nasty prank on some one. It was a completely different thing to beat someone till their bones broke. Maybe it was both…

"Lincoln… can I ask you a question?"

Lincoln's eyes shot over to Cookie in surprise. For a moment, he thought she had fallen asleep too.

"Yes, of course. What do you need?"

Cookie hesitated before replying. Lincoln just figured she was trying to word it properly

"Um… Do you still have a thing for Cristina?"

Lincoln blinked at her a few times, feeling his face heat up. "No. I don't. Why?"

Cookie sighed, turning her body to get a better look at him. "I'm just trying to understand why you are still here. I mean, you could have dropped us off here and left… Why are you here? Did you really forgive her or was that just to get her to calm down?"

Lincoln turned his gaze to Cristina. Why was her there? "I don't really know. I mean, I might not have romantic feelings for her anymore, but I don't hate her. I never have and I doubt I ever will. Went I told her that I forgave her, I meant it. I know that it might seem a bit sudden, but I've been thinking it over. I mean, really, why should I be upset or angry at her? Because she doesn't like me? A lot of people don't like me, it's not the end of the world. Sure it hurt that she practically spit in my face after she found out I liked her, but I'm over it. That was almost a year ago. The things she said yesterday morning definitely hurt a lot more, but after all that we've been through and after finding out that she didn't prank me, those things seem pretty insignificant. I don't really know why I'm still here… But I do know that what happened to Cristina was unfair. Even if she had been the person who pranked me, beating her is going too far."

"I see… Do… Do you think you would ever want to be her friend?"

Lincoln looked back up to Cookie, giving her a thoughtful look. On one hand, it would be really weird to be friends with her… But after today, he doubted he could ever say he didn't have a small part of him that didn't still care for her, even if it wasn't in a romantic way. "Yeah… I guess I could say that I could. I mean, being friends with Cristina would be way better than being her enemy… But I guess that would be up to her. If she still holds a grudge against me, I can't change her mind."

Cookie sighed, looking down at her friend. "I'm pretty sure you already have. Look at her… She looks more comfortable right now, than I think I have ever seen her. I mean, come on, if you can change my mind about you, I'm sure you can change just about anyone's."

Lincoln raised a brow to her. "I changed your mind?"

Cookie nodded, her cheeks gaining a touch of color. "Well, yeah. I thought you were an annoying dork that let everyone walk all over you… But I couldn't have been more wrong. I saw the way you took charge in the van. Despite being the youngest, you kept your head and got everyone to calm down. You weren't even a jerk about it. Then with Cristina this afternoon, you yelled at her to force her to talk. I thought you were being a jerk, but then you pulled her into a hug to calm her. You have really surprised me and I'm sorry for misjudging you. I hope we can become friends too…"

Lincoln sighed. He didn't think he kept his head very well… He did yell after all… "I'm okay with being friends. I didn't realize you thought so poorly of me before, but I am surprised you want to be friends."

Cookie reached over Cristina, flicking Lincoln's forehead, startling him. "Of course I want to be your friend. I made you cookies didn't I? Besides, who wouldn't want to be your friend? You're lucky you're cute Bunny Boy, cause you can be a bit dense."

Lincoln gave her a confused look. "Bunny Boy?"

Cookie just shrugged, settling back down next to Cristina, pulling her casted hand into her arms, hugging it as she closed her eyes. "Yeah, your hair reminds me of a bunny. Now shut up and let me sleep."

Lincoln rolled his eyes, settling on his side of Cristina, looking up at the ceiling. Bunny Boy… That's a new one…

Wait…

…

Cute?

* * *

"Nnnaahh"

Cristina woke up in pain. Her foot hurt, her head was pounding and her hand was cramping. She could feel the muscles in her hand tensing up. It felt like they were trying to rip. She started to tear up. It hurt so bad. She lifted her hand, taking it in her other, trying to close her hand. It wasn't working.

"Please… Please…."

She sat up, realizing she was in an empty bed. She started to freak out. Where did Lincoln and Cookie go?

"Ahhh…"

Tears started to run down her face. The pain was getting worse, beginning to shoot up her arm. She didn't know what was happening. Why did it hurt so bad? Where was everyone?

"Ah… No no no… Please stop…."

She bit her lip, pulling her hand to her chest. The stupid cast was in the way… Why did they even put on a cast? It was only a sprain, right? If it wasn't broken, then why put on a cast?

"Ah…. Please…"

She bit her lip harder, starting to taste blood. She needed to get the damn thing off. She could rub the pain out if it was off, right?

She looked around, hoping to find something to help… She spotted the button thing that the doctor gave her in case she needed to call them. She tried to grab it, but accidently knocked it on the floor. She couldn't take it anymore. The pain, the stress, the loneliness… It was too much.

She looked at the metal rail on the side of the bed. She raised her arm. She swung…

"CRISTINA!"

Cristina froze, inches away from the rail. Lincoln… She turned her head, looking at the blurry shape of Lincoln. Her tears made it hard to see. If not for his white hair, she probably wouldn't have known how it was.

"Please… My hand hurts… The cast… It's in the way…"

Immediately Lincoln ran to her, setting something down before climbing onto the bed next to her, pulling her hand into his own. "Tell me what's wrong with it."

Cristina nodded, using her other hand to wipe away the tears streaming down her face. "My muscles… They hurt. They keep throbbing… I'm sorry, it hurts so bad… And I have a head ache… And my foot hurts. I tried to use the call button, but I knocked it over…"

Lincoln started to rub her hand, sliding his fingers under the cast, pressing his fingers into the muscles, doing his best to massage them… It helped a little.

"Hey, it's okay. Just don't hit the rail. You could hurt your hand worse, understand?"

Cristina nodded, looking down at her gown covered legs. "Yeah… I'm sorry… I was scared. I woke up and you guys were gone… I'm sorry… My head really hurts and it's hard to think…"

Lincoln sighed, scooting closer to Cristina, wrapping his arms around her, pulling her against himself before continuing to rub her hand, moving up and down her arm, while working around the cast the best he could. It really was starting to help.

"Don't apologize. You did nothing wrong. I'm sorry we left, I had to use the bathroom and on the way back I grabbed some ice cream… And don't worry, I washed my hands… Anyway, Cookie went with my sisters to pick up some food and to drop Leni, Luan and Luna off at home. They thought it would be best not to over crowd you and Lynn is our age so we thought you would be more comfortable around her… Not to mention she's a complete bad ass so she can help you feel safe. They should be back soon. I promise I won't leave you again without letting you know first, okay?"

Cristina nodded, leaning into Lincoln. He really was making her hand feel better… "Okay… Thanks Lincoln…"

Lincoln nodded, continuing to focus on her hand. "Of course. Once we get these muscles to relax, I'll get the doctor in here to bring you something for the pain, okay?"

Cristina nodded, leaning her head against his. "Thanks… But that's not what I meant… What I mean is, thank you for everything… For staying here with me… For being kind, for forgiving me, for helping me feel safe… For bringing me here… You have been nothing but kind to me. I might not have done that stupid prank, but I never gave you a reason to like me… Why are you still here?"

Lincoln took a deep breath, letting it out as a long sigh. His breath tickling her neck…

"I… Hmm… Cookie asked me this question while you were sleeping. I still don't really know the answer. I don't still have a crush on you or anything, but like I told her, I can't help but have some sort of feeling for you. I don't like seeing you hurt. I don't like seeing anyone hurt… And after thinking about the conversation I had with Cookie… Well, all of our problems just seem so insignificant, don't they?"

Cristina nodded. She understood what he was saying. She hated him for so long… But right now, she was really thankful he stayed with her. She really didn't want to be alone… And he made her feel safe. She hated feeling so helpless…

"Are we friends?"

Cristina blinked a couple of times, surprised by the question. "I'm sorry?"

Lincoln sighed, working his fingers up the bottom of her cast towards her wrist. "I want to know what we are. Are we still enemies? Or are we something else?"

Cristina thought it over. Were they friends? She didn't hate him anymore, so… She wasn't sure. Wouldn't it just be super awkward for them to be friends? "Do you want to be friends?"

Again Lincoln sighed, moving his hands back to her palm. "I'm not sure… I mean, I'm still a bit upset with what you said yesterday… Man… has it really only been a little over a day? It feels like it's been a lot longer… It's funny, I think Cookie wants us to be friends. She asked me this question, which it why I asked… But again, the more I think of it… I would much rather be your friend then your enemy."

Cristina nodded. It was a fair point. She was tired of their stupid rivalry or whatever it was… She had to agree. "Then… Should we be friends? I mean, only if you want to that is."

Lincoln let out a small chuckle, stopping the massage. "Sure, why not? I mean, would it really be the craziest thing to happen? Hmm… What a weird start to middle school, eh? I mean, you stop hating me, we become friends. What's next? … Does your hand feel better?"

Cristina nodded, closing and opening her hand a couple of times. It barely hurt at all… She felt a lot better. Her head was still pounding like crazy and her foot ached quite a bit, but her hand muscles felt a lot better. "Yeah, it really does. Thank you."

Lincoln nodded, gently placing her hand on her lap. "That great! Umm… Should I call the doctor in now? There is no reason you should be in pain. I'm actually surprised that they haven't come in to check on you for this long."

Cristina looked up at him, giving him a slightly nervous, yet amused look. "Well, after the way you talked to that last doctor, they were probably too scared to come in… Thanks for that by the way… I think I over reacted a bit… I was just really scared…"

Lincoln shook his head, moving to get up, leaning Cristina back against the bed. "No thanks necessary. She should have known better. Even if it was policy or whatever, it was too soon to ask that kind of thing. You don't need that kind of stress. What you do need however, is some pain medicine, food, this ice cream and a foot massage."

Cristina blinked in surprise, watching as Lincoln walked around her bed to pick up the call button. He… Wanted to give her a foot massage? Really? Wow… What a gentle man…

"There we go. Just give it a few moments and you pain will get sorted, okay? Oh, do you want your ice cream now or after diner? It will probably be mostly mealted after the food gets here, so if you want to wait until after, I can just get more when Cookie gets here. I could just return it, but you don't want to be alone."

Cristina sighed, sitting forward. "Oh, now is fine. I'm actually really hungry. I never got breakfast or lunch. Rusty and the others made me lose what I got from Flip's and well… I failed pretty hard with breakfast and just gave up…"

Lincoln nodded, tying the call button around the bed rail before walking back around to grab the ice cream. "Alright. Now, I wasn't really sure what kind of ice cream you would like, so I grabbed a chocolate and a vanilla. Whichever you don't want, I'll eat. I like both."

Cristina gave him a small smile. He seemed to have really thought threw everything… Even the little things… "I'll have the vanilla. I do like chocolate, but I really like vanilla."

Lincoln nodded, returning her smile with a larger one. "Alright, here you go. Would you like me to raise the head of the bed?"

Cristina nodded, accepting the ice cream and a spoon. "Yes please." She was actually looking forward to the ice cream. Her mouth was super dry and tasted of blood. She was really glad she didn't bite through her lip, as it already stopped bleeding.

She let out a relieved sigh as the bed rose. Sitting up helped her head ache a little. "Thank you. That's a lot better."

Lincoln nodded, taking a seat by her feet, pulling the blanket off her legs. "Of course and if you need something else, please, don't be afraid to ask. I'm here to help… Could you tuck your gown under yourself? If I'm going to give you a foot massage, I don't want to accidently see anything while I hold your foot."

Cristina nodded, setting her ice cream down and begun to tuck her gown under her like he asked. She couldn't help the slight blush that warmed her face. She really didn't think Lincoln had been serious about the foot massage… He really was a gentle man… She really misjudged him… She hoped he was serious about being friends. She owned him a serious debt…

As she finished tucking the gown between and around her legs, Lincoln pulled them onto her lap, starting with her casted foot. She picked up her ice cream, starting to dig in while he opened his, setting it down on the bed. With one hand, he ate his ice cream, while with the other, he started to massage her toes.

The cast on her foot was actually really weird. Again, it was a real cast, but this one only covered her last three toes up to just over her ankle. It supported everything, but it was really uncomfortable. She guessed it was hard to make a cast for just a couple of toes. She hadn't realized it, but when she stubbed her toe that morning, she actually broke her little toe, her second toe and one of the small bones connecting her little toe to her foot was cracked. She was never going to go bare foot again…

"So, how's the ice cream?"

Cristina snapped out of her thoughts, taking another bite. "Oh, it's great. I didn't realize that hospital ice cream was real ice cream… I mean, I thought it wouldn't have sugar."

"Oh, come on. We might try to make things healthier, but we aren't monsters."

Cristina and Lincoln both looked up, looking at the doorway as a woman walked in. It was some nurse. Cristina sighed. Another different person… She had to have had seen over two dozen different doctors and nurses today. It was ridiculous…

"Hello kids, what can I do for you? You did ring, right?"

Cristina nodded. "Yeah, I have a really bad head ache. My hand hurts, though nowhere near as bad as it was a few minutes ago. Lincoln massaged the pain away, but the muscles were cramping really bad. And my foot aches. He was just starting to massage that too."

The nurse nodded, smiling at Lincoln. "I see. I'll grab you something that will help with that in just a moment. It sounds to me like your muscles are spasming. That is normal with your injuries. It will probably happen again, so I'll have your doctor prescribe you a muscle relaxer. It's a good thing you have this little cutie. How did you convince him to give you a massage?"

Cristina felt her face grow warm again. "Oh, I didn't ask… he just… Offered."

The nurse nodded, grinning at the blushing Lincoln. "Wow, you've got yourself a winner here. Is he your boyfriend or something?"

Cristina shook her head, her face growing a lot warmer. "No, no. He's just a friend." A really kind, gentle man of a friend, but certainly not a boyfriend. That, would never happen. She doubted he would even want that anymore.

The nurse kept her smile, looking at them both for a moment longer before turning for the door. "Well, you're a lucky girl to have a friend like him. Anyway, I'll be back in just a few moments with something for that head ache. I'm certain it will go away in a couple of days. In fact, tomorrow it should feel a lot better. You'll have some nasty bruising, but none of you injuries are too serious."

Cristina nodded, going back to her ice cream, enjoying the cold moving down her throat. She liked this nurse. She was a bit odd, but she was definitely nice… And she was right, she was a very lucky girl. Even if she wasn't completely sure why. She was just glad that her issues with Lincoln her over for the most part. She definitely owed him a serious apology when she could think clearer and their friendship or whatever it was, was certainly weird and awkward, but it was nice.

"Well… She's… nice."

Cristina smiled, giving Lincoln a nod. He had finished his ice cream and had really started to massage her foot. Or at least what he could get to and if felt amazing.

"Yes. Yes she is. It's nice to talk with someone that has a sense of humor, even if she is a bit odd. And she's a lot nicer that those other doctors and nurses. I wish she was her earlier."

Lincoln nodded, sliding his fingers between her toes, making the crack, though without even the slightest bit of pain… He was good.

"Yeah. Some of those people were really weird… Although, the guy who put in your nose splint was kind of cool. He was wearing an Ace Savvy shirt under his lab coat… What does it fell like. Your nose splint that is."

Cristina sighed, setting her now empty ice cream dish on the table with her water.

"Well, it's not very comfortable, but at least I can breathe out of my nose now. It also helps hold my nose's shape, which is very good. I would hate for my nose to be lope sided for the rest of my life."

Lincoln nodded, pressing his fingers under her cast, pressing into the soles of her feet, taking care not to irritate the bandaged areas. "Yeah, but you would still look great… Err… Sorry, I guess old habits die hard."

Cristina sighed, enjoying the foot massage too much to care. "It's fine. I shouldn't be annoyed because you were attracted to me… Really, I can't even really remember why I was so mad. It's stupid really. So you kissed a photo of me, big deal. Maybe I was just nervous about what other people would think… I was suck a jerk to you and I'm truly sorry… Wow… That actually felt pretty good to say…"

Lincoln let out tired sigh. "I'm sure and I'm sorry for putting that in that stupid video. I should have considered how it would have affected you. I didn't and it embarrassed you… But that was in the past. This is now. Now we can start over."

Cristina nodded, closing her eyes, hoping to lower the pain in her head. "Yeah… Start over… I like the sound of that… Mmm…" Cristina felt her face heat up again. Lincoln pressed his thumb into the back of her calf. If felt really good. "Sorry… Where did you learn to massage so well?"

"Lincoln let out a small chuckle, making Cristina relax a bit more. "Well, when you live with ten sisters, you pick up a thing or two. With Lynn having her sports, Lori with her sore feet and Luna with her aching shoulders, I've had a lot of practice. I used to hate it, but now I guess it's just another skill I have. Besides, it's great for when I need to convince one of my sisters to do something. After a quick massage they are usually a lot more open to something new if you know what I mean."

Cristina nodded, letting out an amused sigh. "Yeah… So, what's it like living with so many sisters? I mean, you must feel over crowded a lot?"

"Not really. I mean, there are a lot of times where I wish I could have some me time, but other times, I actually feel really lonely. I'm the only guy in the house other than dad and I'm the only one that doesn't have a roommate. My sisters can get very loud and very annoying… But I wouldn't want to trade them for the world. They always have my back when it's most important and I'll always have their's."

Cristina sighed as Lincoln switched feet. Other than her head ache, she felt super relaxed. "Must be nice. I don't have any siblings and my parents are always on some stupid business trip. Though, I guess I could consider Cookie to be like a sister to me. I really couldn't ask for a better friend. She's been there for me from the beginning. I really owe her big time."

"Yeah, she's pretty great. She really cares for you and wants to help you in any way she can."

Cristina nodded, smiling to herself. "Yep… She seems to like you a lot too. I hear she even made you her amazing cookies? You must be special, she has only made them for her mother and me."

"Oh? Special how? I mean, I know she wants to be friends and I'm good with that, but I don't think she thinks too highly of me… Though, she does make the best cookies that I've ever had…"

Cristina nodded, grinning. He might be an intelligent kid, but he could be pretty dense too. With the way she had her eyes locked on him earlier… Well, that was between her and Lincoln… "Yeah, her cookies are the best…"

"Here we are dear. Something for the pain and I had your doctor order you a muscle relaxer."

Cristina looked up, jumping a little in surprise as the nurse came in, holding a small cup. She walked up to her, grinning at Lincoln as he continued to massage Cristina's feet. "Here you go. Make sure to take them with plenty of water. Do you need anything else?"

Cristina shook her head, taking the pills from the nurse before turning to grab her water. "No. Thank you though, but I'm all good. I just needed something for my head and Lincoln's sisters are bringing food, so I'm good."

The nurse nodded, moving back towards the door. "Alright then. Well, if you need anything else, just press the call bell and Nurse Hope will be right in, okay dear?"

Cristina nodded, giving the nurse a small smile. "Okay. Thank you."

Nurse Hope nodded, walking through the door, but paused when she nearly walked into some one "Ah, hello there. You must be the cute one's sisters."

Cristina let out a small chuckle, watching as Lincoln's face turned a slight shade of red. She took her pills, shaking her head in amusement. She still hated the hospital, but with this new nurse, who was actually really nice and with having Lincoln there, it was a lot better than it could have been. She would have hated to be there alone and even with Cookie there, it still wouldn't have been the same…

"Hey guys, how are you do… Aw, Lincy's giving her a foot massage, no fair."

Cristina grinned as Lincoln sighed, looking behind himself, ending the massage.

"Her feet were hurting and her hand was spasming, it's not that big of a deal."

His older sister… Lori was it? Stepped up next to the bed, followed closely by Lynn and Cookie. Their arms were full of bags from Burpin Burger. She loved Burpin Burger…

"Come on Linc, I'm messing with you. It's sweet that you did it. Now, who is hungry? Cookie said that Burpin Burger was Cristina's favorite and we all love it as well, so… Dig in. We got burgers, with and without cheese. There are fries and some sodas too. Oh, and the burgers without pickles are for Lincoln and Cristina. Apparently both of you are weird like that… Anyway, dig in."

Cristina sighed, taking the burger that Lori handed her, along with a thing of fries and a root beer… Her favorite… These people were great…

"Umm… Lori, are you forgetting something?"

Cristina looked up at Lynn, confused by the serious look on her face. Did something happen?

Lori sighed, handing out more food. "No Lynn, I didn't forget, I just think it's better for Cristina and Lincoln to eat first."

Something was wrong. Cristina could tell from the way that Cookie slouched and Lynn crossed her arms.

"What happened?"

They all looked at Cristina for a moment before all eyes moved to Lori. She was tired. Cristina could see the bags under her eyes. They were all tired. She could tell it was bad news, even before Lori said so.

"Well, I have bad news, good news and really bad news. Start eating and I'll tell you the bad news first."

Cristina nodded, feeling a bit nervous. What was she going to tell her? Had she somehow been hurt worse than the doctors originally thought? No, Nurse Hope would have told her if she was… What could it be… She unwrapped her burger, taking a bite. Even if there was bad news, she was still starving…

Lori took a quick look around, seeming to be making sure that everyone was eating… Either that or she was stalling…

"Alright… Well the bad news is that I still can't get a hold of your parents. I've called their cell phones, their work numbers and even the hotel that they are supposed to be staying in. I've left over a dozen messages, but none of them have been returned. I'm sorry, but they still don't know the truth."

Cristina swallowed her bite of burger. It went down like sand. She grabbed her soda, taking a sip. It helped a little… "I see… I can't say I'm surprised. They weren't here for me when I needed them to begin with, so I don't know why I thought they would be here now…" She took another bite of her burger. She wasn't going to let that news ruin her meal. Her parents could bite it…

"Hey, it's going to be okay Cris. They'll come right back home as soon as they get the messages, you'll see. Besides, you have me, Lincoln and the others. We are still here for you."

Cristina sighed, looking up at Cookie. She looked even more tired than Lincoln's sisters. Only Lincoln looked more exhausted, but he always looked like that… "Thanks Cookie… I appreciate that. I mean, I can't say I'm not disappointed in my parents, but I'm pretty used to it."

Cookie sighed, grabbing her things and moving around to the other side of Cristina, sitting on the bed. Cristina loved her friend. She was always there for her when she needed her…

"Well, you shouldn't be used to it. They need to get their heads out of their butts so I can kick it."

Cristina let out a small chuckle, letting Cookie lean against her. Definitely the greatest friend she could ever have….

"Which leads us to the next part of that news. When I dropped off our other sisters, we had a talk with our parents, who called Cookie's mother. We all agree that you can't go home until your parents return. With your broken toes, you hand and that concussion, even if it's only mild, it's not safe for you to be alone. You have two options. Either go home and stay with Cookie, her mother says she will still have to go to school, but Lincoln can come over to stay with you for the day. Or, you can come over to stay with us. You'll have to sleep on the couch, but Lincoln will be there. Also, Cookie's mother said she could come over to stay with you, but again, she will have to go to school. The decision is yours, so I'll let you think it over while I tell you the other news."

Cristina blinked a couple of times in surprise. She really didn't know which idea was better. On one hand, she was familiar with Cookie's home and had spent many nights there while her parents were on business trips. Not to mention, Cookie always made those amazing cookies… And Lincoln could stay with her while Cookie was at school…

On the other hand, if she chose to stay at the Loud's house, she would be around a lot more people, which she was slightly nervous about, but it could potentially be safer… and Cookie could stay with her when she wasn't in school… Then again, she still didn't really know Lincoln's sisters that well… Maybe it would be better to stay with Cookie…

"Now for the half good, half terrible news…"

Cristina snapped out of her thoughts. She could figure out where she would be sleeping later. She was just glad she didn't have to stay in the hospital. She was certain they were going to make her stay overnight… She really hated the hospital.

Lori paused to take a sip of her soda. Cristina could tell that the news must have been pretty bad… Wait, how could news be have good and terrible at the same time? That didn't really make sense…

So, the good news is that Flip had a security camera set up… I know, literally shocking. Apparently he was having issues with people trying to break in and steal stuff… Again, shocking… Anyway, he was looking over the footage from this afternoon when he saw what happened to you."

Cristina put her burger down, looking at Lori in shock. "So… They have proof that Rusty and his friends hurt me?"

Lori let out a tired sigh, making Cristina frown. Something was wrong…

"Sort of. The police looked over the footage this evening and found a few problems. But before I tell you them, there is a little bit more good news. The two boys that were with Rusty and the others, they admitted to beating you. As soon as the police went to question them, they crumbled. They are being charged with aggravated assault. They will never touch you again…"

Cristina knew that there was more bad news to come, but that didn't stop her from feeling the slightest touch of relief. There were at least two people who wouldn't be able to hurt her again…

"Which leads into the rest of the news. For starters, Rusty and that Boy Jordan kid didn't touch you, so they can't charge them with assault. However, they are technically accomplices, so they were considering charging them anyway. They bad news is, Boy Jordan's father is a very accomplished Lawyer and due to a over looked technicality, they can't be charged."

Cristina's heart rate started to quicken. "So… So Rusty and Boy Jordan are going to get away with everything scoot free… because of some mistake the police made…"

Cristina suddenly lost her appetite. This was bad… This was really bad. "Th..Then they know I told on them… Rusty said that if I said anything… He said… Oh god… He's going to kill me…"

She pulled her legs to her chest, wrapping her arms around herself. They were going to kill her… And she doubted Paige would be able to stop them this time… Wait, what about Paige? It didn't matter… Rusty was going to hurt her again… How could she have been so stupid? She should have just kept her mouth closed…

"Cristina, calm down. There is still a way to get them in trouble. One that not even Boy Jordan's father can worm them out of."

Cristina doubted it. Something else would happen… Why did this have to happen? Things were just starting to get a tiny bit better.

"Cristina, you know you are safe right? We decided to put our differences aside and become friends and friends protect one another. I promise, until this is sorted, we are here for you. Do you understand?"

Cristina sighed, giving Lincoln a small nod. She didn't know what he thought he could do… But he did have his sisters... and she had him and Cookie… okay… maybe they really did have some kind of idea… "Fine… What do the police think they could do?"

Lori stepped closer to her, dropping to her knees, looking up at Cristina. "Cristina, they can still charge Rusty, Boy Jordan and Paige for what they did to Lincoln. They couldn't charge you because there was no proof, but if we had proof that they did it, your name will be cleared and they will be charged with not only recluse endangerment and bullying towards Lincoln, but also for vandalizing the school. Not to mention the amount of trouble they will get in for almost ruining your life. I know it's not what any of us would want, but it would keep you a lot safer. And I promise, we won't let them hurt you. now, is there any think you can think of that might be able to help?"

Cristina sighed. Her head was still aching and with the new added stress, she couldn't really think that well. Maybe they could…

"Oh, holy crap… I just had a really good, bad idea."

Cristina looked up at Lincoln, raising a brow. What did he have planed? What could he think of that she didn't know? She hoped it wasn't really a bad idea… "What is it?"

Lincoln opened his mouth, pausing for a moment. "Okay… So… Wow, this is a really bad idea, but I think it could work… You said that when Paige kissed you, Rusty videoed it, right?"

Cristina nodded, feeling her face heat up. "Yeah, but I guarantee that he deleted it as soon as the cops were done questioning him."

Lincoln nodded, taking a sip of his soda. His eyes were darting back and forth, almost like he was seeing something that wasn't there.

"Yes, that is true, but didn't you also say that she told Rusty to send her a copy?"

Cristina nodded again, not sure where he was going with this. "Yeah, but she probably… Wait… Oh wow… She might not have deleted it… If the police questioned her, it would have been about Rusty and Boy Jordan. She didn't hurt me at all, she was the one to stop it…"

Lincoln nodded, a small amount of excitement working into his voice. "Exactly. She would have been a witness, not a suspect… Which means…"

"Which means maybe she would still have the video and might be able to help prove I didn't do the prank and that Rusty and Boy Jordan did…

Cristina cut him off, getting a little excited… Only for it to quickly disappear, getting replaced with doubt. "But why would she help? It would just get her in trouble for what happened to you…"

Lincoln leaned forward, grabbing her hands. "Yes, but I'm pretty sure she has a thing for you. After what Rusty did to you, I bet it has her thinking. If he was willing to let someone beat you so you wouldn't tell on him, what do you think he would do to make sure she didn't say a thing? If I told her I wouldn't charge her for the prank, maybe she would help. You know, for self preservation."

Cristina looked at him in shock. "Wait, you are willing to let Paige go without any sort of punishment… For me?"

Lincoln nodded, giving her a small smile. "Of course. We've already talked about this. The problems we had in the past are in the past. What happened to you is much more serious. I know Paige won't hurt you again and I highly doubt she would tempt fate by screwing with me again, so two birds with one stone, you know?"

Cristina sighed. He had some very good points, but she doubted it would be this simple… None of the was simple… "How do you know Rusty hasn't already thought of this all? I mean, what if he made her delete her copy? And what about Lincoln? Wouldn't Rusty and Boy Jordan already know that Lincoln knows that they were the ones that pranked him?"

"Nope."

Cristina looked at Lynn in surprised. She was still eating her burger. Must be nice to be so relaxed… "What do you mean no?"

Lynn shrugged, swallowing her bite with a sip of her soda. "They only talked about hurting you. As far as Rusty, Boy Jordan and Paige know, Lincoln still thinks you were the one that pranked him. In fact, I think we can work with all of this. I can get Paige to meet with Lincoln, don't worry about how, just leave that to me… We can leave the major planning to Lincoln, as he's… Well, quite frankly, there is a reason we call him the man with the plan. Really, all you have to do is focus on getting better. We will figure this out, I promise. Just tell us where you want to stay until your parents get home and we can get started, okay?"

Cristina sighed. She still wasn't so sure about this whole thing… There was a lot that didn't really make sense to her… But she did trust Lincoln, Cookie and Lincoln's sisters… After all, they had done nothing but treat her with kindness… Even if she didn't feel that she deserved it… And she had a feeling that this whole thing was way more complicated that they all thought… But she did know one thing…

"I think it would be best if is stayed with you all and Lincoln…"

* * *

**First off, I want to be very clear with the fact that I know little to nothing about both law and medicine. I just know what I've been told by friends who work in these fields. If something doesn't make sense, that's okay, it doesn't make sense to me either, sorry.**

**Anyway, please feel free to tell me what you think and as always, have a good one.**


	9. Chapter 9

"BEEP BEEP BEEP…"

Paige awoke with a headache. She sat up in bed and tried to rub the sleep from her eyes. It wasn't much help. She reached across her nightstand, turning off her alarm. She didn't want to get up. She was exhausted and just wanted to go back to sleep… But she couldn't.

No, she had to get up, get dressed and get ready for school. She had no choice. She had to keep her schedule. Otherwise, things would get even more complicated than they already were… She shook her head, trying to clear it. No, nothing was wrong. Everything was fine.

She gave her face a couple of light slaps, trying to wake herself. It didn't help… She let out a sigh as she turned her body to get up from her bed, setting her feet on the cool floor of her room. Maybe a shower would help…

She gave herself a nod. Yeah, a shower would wake her up and then she could just go about her day like normal. She would get dressed, eat breakfast, go to school, then come home and maybe play a video game or something… Yeah, just another normal day.

She stood, stretching out each limb before moving to her dresser, opening it. She looked over her many outfits, trying to decide on what to wear… She selected a pair of jeans and a yellow tank top. Her favorite outfit… Yes sir, it's just another normal day.

Paige grabbed her underclothes and her favorite black bracelets before heading to her bedroom door, moving for the bathroom. She stepped into the hall, giving it a quick look around before walking into the bathroom, closing and locking the door behind her. After setting her clothes on the counter next to the sink, she stepped over to turn on the shower, letting it heat up.

Moving back to the sink, she gave herself a look in the mirror, frowning. She looked just as tired as she felt. She really hoped the shower would help wake her up… Maybe she should take a cold shower… She shook her head at her reflection. She didn't care how tired she was, there was no way she was going to freeze herself to death this early in the morning…

She looked down from the mirror, looking for her tooth brush. Might as well get that part of her morning out of the way… She grabbed her tooth brush, which somehow made its way into the medicine cabinet, and the toothpaste, which she struggled to open due to it being a new tube…

After squeezing too much toothpaste onto her brush, she started to brush her teeth, grimacing at the over powering taste. She liked mint, but not that much… After about half of her teeth were brushed, she noticed a piece of paper taped to the mirror, making her raise a brow. How didn't she notice that before?

She stopped brushing, keeping the brush in her mouth while she brought her hand to grab the note. Bringing it down to read, she had to blink a couple of times to focus her eyes. Apparently she was a bit more tired than she thought…

"Hey Paige, so while I was cleaning the bathroom this morning, I accidentally knocked your toothbrush into the toilet. I stuck it in the medicine cabinet so you wouldn't use it. I'll bring you a new one when I get home.

Sorry, Dad."

"Ps. We need to talk about what happened last night as well."

Paige's mouth dropped open, the brush falling out, into the sink. Immediately, she turned on the sink, bringing her mouth to the tap, letting it overfill with water. She was going to kill her father. Who the hell drops a tooth brush in the toilet and not throw it away?

She moved her head from the sink and quickly stepped to the shower, reaching in to grab a bottle of body wash. She opened it, tipped it upside down and squirted it into her mouth. Not only did it taste foul, but she got some in her eye, making her cry out in pain while she swished it around. Maybe soap wasn't the best idea, but even if her father had just finished cleaning the bathroom, she still preferred the soap.

She brought her head back to the sink and spat out the soap before thoroughly rinsing her mouth, letting the water again over flow her mouth. Pulling back away, she reached for the mouth rinse and opened it, pouring it into her mouth. She rapidly swished it around, trying to not only clean her mouth, but also trying to get rid of the taste of soap.

After nearly choking, she spat it out and went in for a third time to rinse out, not only her mouth, but her burning eye. When she pulled back out, she turned off the water and slid down to her knees, gasping for breath. She was going to kill her father with the toilet brush…

"Yep, just another normal day…"

* * *

Paige rubbed her eye as she walked down stairs, moving for the kitchen. Her mouth was dry, her eye was burning and she was cold. By the time she had finished washing out her mouth, all of the hot water had gone down the drain and she was forced to take a freezing shower…

But at least she wasn't tired anymore… She shook her head, walking into the kitchen. She wasn't going to let her day get any worse. She was going to eat her favorite cereal, she was going to watch her favorite show, and then she was going to go out to wait for the bus. Once she was on the bus, she would read her favorite story on her phone.

She walked to the cupboard next to the fridge and grabbed her box of cinnamon toast. After setting it on the counter next to the stove, she grabbed a bowl and a spoon. She poured herself a bowl, put the spoon in and walked to the fridge, opening it to grab the milk.

She walked back to her bowl and popped the cap off the milk. An odd smell hit her nose, but she paid it little mind as she started to pour the milk… Only for the smell to grow stronger as chunks of curdled milk plopped into her bowl, making her nose scrunch in disgust and she cringed as spoiled milk splashed her face.

She took a long, slow breath as she popped the cap back onto the jug and gently set it on the counter, then took a couple of steps back. She was getting angry, but wasn't going to let this ruin her day either. She was going to make this a normal day even if it killed her…

* * *

Paige had a headache. It wasn't an explosive headache, but it was still bad enough that it made reading difficult and it seemed that the harder that she tried to focus, the less she could. It really hadn't been a good day for her. It started out pretty crappy, but took a turn for the better after she gave up on breakfast that morning and sat down to watch her favorite show. After it ended she headed out to wait for the bus, which showed up a little early, which made her a bit happy. She liked riding the bus, as she could just sit there and read her stories without getting interrupted…

But not this time. No, her slight uphill of the day took a sharp nose dive after only a few stops. She had just been sitting there, minding her own business, reading a lovely little story, when she felt her seat shift, signaling to her that someone sat next to her. She expected it to be one of her friends or perhaps either Rusty or Boy Jordan, god forbid… But no, it was one hundred times worse.

When she first saw them, she was a bit confused, as she didn't really recognize her. She swore she had seen her somewhere before, but she couldn't quite place it. She looked older, maybe by a year or two, but wasn't much taller than herself. She gave her a quick look over, wondering if maybe she had sat with her by mistake or if it was just for convenience since the bus would be about half full by now, but Paige noticed that there was a couple of empty seats next to her's, confusing her more.

"Um… Can I help you?"

The girl didn't answer right away. Instead she chose to pull the hood of her dark grey hoodie down and then gave Paige a serious look, making her a little nervous. Why did she look so familiar? She had brown hair in a pony tail, her skin was a bit tan and was covered in freckles and her eyes… Oh… Paige swore to god those eyes could have ignited her with the shear heat and anger in them… Had she somehow pissed off this girl?

"You don't know who I am, do you?"

Paige shivered as the girl talked. Her voice was steady and calm, yet it was laced in venom, making her skin crawl. "Umm… Y..you look familiar, but I'm not sure from where… Is something wrong?"

The girl's hands clenched into fists, making Paige regret opening her mouth. Whatever she had done to anger this girl, it must have been pretty bad… Oh… It hit Paige like she knew this girl wanted to hit her. She realized in a flash why this girl looked so familiar. Her eyes and her freckles should have been a dead giveaway…

"Oh… Oh no…"

Paige felt light headed as the girl gave her what could have been a grin, but looked more like the look a shark would have given its prey.

"Oh, so you do know who I am?"

Paige slowly nodded, feeling her stomach churn. This wasn't supposed to happen. All she wanted to for this day to be normal, but it seemed that no matter what, it was determined to ruin her… She hadn't been serious about the whole, no matter what she was going to have a normal day and she definitely didn't want to die…

"Come on Lynn, you know what Lincoln said, he doesn't want her to get hurt. We need her to trust us."

Paige jumped as she heard a much more, familiar voice and an equally familiar looking girl took the seat across from them. As she sat, she turned to face Paige, giving her a look with just as much anger, making her even more nervous.

The girl next to Paige, Lynn, turned to address the girl, Cookie, letting out an irritated sigh. "I know what Lincoln said and I promised I wouldn't harm a single hair on her head…" Lynn turned back to Paige and raised a hand to her head, making her flinch away and press her back as far into the side of the bus as she could. Her heart started to pound in her chest, threatening to burst from it as Lynn ran her hand over Paige's hair.

"And as Lincoln's big sister, it's my job to make sure nobody tries to hurt him or his friends again…"

Paige shuddered as Lynn gently continued to brush her hair with her hand. She didn't know what was worse, the fact that this was Lincoln's older sister, the fact that it was Lynn Loud, the one person everyone knew not to anger or the fact that she wasn't hurting her, but she was being gentle. That was it. Paige couldn't take it. She felt tears well in her eyes and as they started to drip down her cheeks, her confusion only grew as the anger in Lynn's eyes shrank.

"Wow now, don't cry. I'm not going to hurt you. I promised Lincoln I wasn't and I like to keep my promises. Not to mention that it would just make Lincoln upset with me and I don't like to see him upset. You understand that right? Do you have any siblings?"

Paige rapidly shook her head, trying to stop her crying. "N..No…"

Lynn sighed, dropping her hand to Paige's shoulder, still not hurting her. "Well, one day you might and you'll know just how I, along with Lincoln's other sisters and his friends, all feel. Look, I'm really not going to hurt you. We just need to talk, okay?"

Paige nodded, not wanting to anger Lynn. She didn't know what was going on, but she was smart enough to know when she was cornered. "O..okay… H..how did you find out?"

Lynn sighed once more, dropping her hand to her own lap, letting Paige relax just a touch, though not too much…

"Cristina."

Paige's head snapped to Lynn, giving her a shocked look. It was like all of her own fear was ripped out and replaced with a strong wave of worry that she didn't quite understand. "Cristina? Is she okay? Where is she? I tried to find her last night, but I didn't know where she lived. Please, you have to know that I had nothing to do with…"

"Wow, take a breath kid. I know you had nothing to do with hurting her. She's fine, well, about as fine as she can be, what with a broken foot, a broken nose, a very badly sprained wrist, a wicked concussion and all of the bruising that she has… She's lucky. You're lucky… I know that you helped her. Believe me, if you hadn't helped her when you did or joined in with that beating… Well, let's just say you and I would be having a very different conversation right now… But you didn't and you stopped it. You saved Cristina's life and in doing so, you saved your own skin. If you want to make sure this whole mess doesn't ruin your life, I highly recommend that you do exactly what I say, got it? Again, I'm not going to lay a finger on you. Every consequence you receive with be caused by you and you alone, got it?"

Paige blinked a couple of times, trying to take in all that Lynn had just told her before she rapidly nodded. She had no idea what was going on, but she wasn't going to anger this girl… "Got it… What do you want from me?"

Lynn looked towards Cookie, giving her a small nod. In response, Cookie pulled out a small note book, in which she wrote something before tearing out a small piece of paper, handing it to Lynn. After taking the note from Cookie, Lynn held it towards Paige, who quickly took it. She held it up, looking at it in confusion before turning back to Lynn, wiping her eyes.

"What is this?"

Lynn sighed, taping her fingers on her own lap. "It's an address. Meet us there after school or face the consequences. We will only wait until five. Don't tell anyone where you are going, espeacally not Rusty or what's his face or I promise you, you will regret it. I promise as long as you do this, you will not be harmed… Oh, and bring your phone… Also, have a good day."

With that, Lynn stood from the seat and moved across to sit with Cookie. Both of their faces grew blank and Paige shifted back into place, trying to calm her breathing. She gave Lynn a quick, dumbfounded look, before turning her head to look out the window. She didn't want to irritate her or Cookie. She wasn't really sure what had just happened. What she did know however, was that she wasn't going to make Lynn wait. This was one appointment that Paige was going to show up on time for…

* * *

Cristina awoke in pain. Before she could even opened her eyes, she shot up on the couch and started to hold her hand. She tried to massage the pain away, but she couldn't get a good enough angle to get under the stupid cast.

She took a quick look around the living room, hoping that Cookie was still there, but after seeing both the room empty and the bright light shining through the windows, she realized that she had slept in pretty late and that Cookie had gone to school… Why couldn't her mother have let her stay with Cristina? She was feeling lonely and scared. Why did her hand hurt so bad?

"Nagh…"

Cristina's teeth clenched and tears started to stream down her face as her fingers painfully spread apart. Her muscles were tensing so hard she thought they were going to rip…

She looked around, hoping for a sign of Lincoln. He promised he wouldn't leave her unless he told her where he was going first, but there was no… Cristina's thoughts trailed off as she saw a piece of paper, a glass of water and two pills sitting on the coffee table next to the couch.

Immediately, she reached for the pills and the water, taking them as quickly as she could without choking herself. As soon as they were down, she set the half full glass onto the table and reached for the paper, doing her best to fight through the pain.

Once it was in her hand and in her lap, she had to pause for a moment to collect herself. The pain was starting to spread up her arm and she could feel her heart beat in it, making her fingers twitch. She hoped the pain medicine would kick in soon…

She took a couple of deep breaths before she wiped her streaming eyes and looked at the paper. It was a note from Lincoln…

"Hey Cristina, if you wake up and I'm not in here with you, know I'm either upstairs taking a shower or I'm in the kitchen making breakfast. If you are in pain, take both pills on the table with plenty of water. If the pain is really bad, call out to me and I'll be there as fast as I can to massage the pain away.

Lincoln."

Cristina let out a shaky sigh. She was still feeling worried about being alone, but she did feel a small amount of relief knowing that Lincoln was still in the house with her and that he had been nice enough to leave her a note…

"Ahh…!"

She grit her teeth again as her hand started to shake. The pain stopped getting worse, but the shaking was making it constant and sharp. She didn't really want to call out to Lincoln in case he was still in the shower, not to mention she felt weird about it in general. Just waking up in his house was weird.

That was one thing she never thought would happen in a billion lifetimes and yet, here she was. Not that she really minded. She had to admit, despite the pain and the trouble and the awkwardness of it all, she was feeling the safest and most comfortable she had in days… She really owed Lincoln and his family… But how could she repay them?

"NIngh…!"

Cristina bit her lip as her hand spasmed and she had to wrap her other hand around it to keep the shaking under control. Damn thing was going to drive her crazy… Okay, maybe calling out wouldn't be the worst idea, but what if he's busy? Surely he wouldn't want to tend to her all day…

"Cristina…?"

Cristina turned her head, looking behind the couch in slight surprise. Standing in what she could only assume to be the kitchen doorway, was Lincoln. While she tried to wipe away her tears, Lincoln started for her, making her sigh. When he stepped up to her, he gave her a worried look, making her sigh once more.

"I'm fine, my hand muscles are just spazing…"

Lincoln just sat next to her and took her hand, starting to gently massage it. "Did you just wake up? How long ago do you think it was since you took the pills? I would have been here when you woke, but I had to shower and I just took out the trash. I was just going to start on breakfast when I heard you cry out in pain. Why didn't you call out for me?"

Cristina looked down at her casted foot, frowning. Why didn't she call out? He told her to. Even wrote it out in his note, so why couldn't she just ask for his help when she needed it? "I… Uh… It's fine. It only hurts a little… AHH!"

Cristina grit her teeth as her hand tensed and Lincoln immediately focused on massaging out the pain, working his fingers around the cast. "Cristina, please don't lie to me. I know it hurts. I can feel it. Your skin is hot and your eyes are filled with pain. I'm here to help and I'm not just talking about with the pain. You can talk to me as well. Please, tell me what's going on. How do you feel and how can I help you?"

Cristina nibbled the side of her cheek and she kept her eyes glued on her casted foot as Lincoln worked. "Really, I'm fine… It's just… No… Forget it… I'm fine…"

"Cristina, I know you're not fine… But I can't force you to talk. Just know, I'm here to listen when you're ready… You know, it's funny. For around a year I thought this day would never come."

Cristina lifted her head and wiped her eyes again before giving Lincoln a confused look. "What do you mean?"

Lincoln let out a sigh before turning his head to meet her gaze. "I mean this. You. Me. Us. Cookie. I honestly never thought that we would or even could be friends… I know this whole thing has been crazy and very emotional for all of us… But I can't help but be a little happy about what happened. I mean, obviously not with what happened to you. I would never have wanted you to get hurt, I don't care what you did to me. What I'm trying to say is, I'm glad we are working through all of our problems together and I'm happy that You, Cookie and I are trying to be friends."

Cristina blinked at him a few times, mulling over his words before replying. She had to admit, despite everything thing that had happened… "Me too… I am happy that we are… Whatever you want to call this… But… Are you sure you want to be my friend? I mean… I really hurt you and… And despite all of that, you have done nothing but show me kindness and forgiveness… And… And… _Sniffle… _And I don't deserve any of it…"

Cristina felt something inside of her give. It was like all of the stress and pressure from the last few days had finally gotten to her… She started to cry. Not to say she hadn't been crying from the pain in her hand, no, this was different. She could feel it in her heart and Lincoln's gentle hand massage and his patient kindness just made it worse...

She tried to pull her hand from Lincoln, but he wouldn't let go and all she could do was pull her legs to her chest and rest her face in her knees as she sobbed. She didn't understand what was going on and she was feeling things she hadn't felt in a really long time.

Lincoln didn't say anything right away. He just slid closer to her, wrapping an arm around her and continued the hand massage. Cristina grew even more confused when she started to feel a little better, making her even more confused when she started to cry harder.

"It's all going to be okay Cristina. I can't promise it will be easy and I don't know how long it's going to take, but I can promise it will get better. When you are ready to talk, know I'm here. I will always be here when you need me. I told you that I forgive you and I was serious. We are friends now and I care for you. We can just start over. From this point on, we are friends and I'm not going to let anything change that. Not our past, not Rusty, not his jerks friends, nothing. As long as you need me, I'm here."

Cristina couldn't take it anymore. She turned her body, ignoring the pain in her hand as she pulled it from Lincoln and ignoring the pain in her foot as she pressed it into the couch. She just turned, wrapped her arms around Lincoln and gave him the biggest hug she could. "I'm so confused, I'm terrified and I don't know what to do anymore."

Cristina paused, taking a deep breath before continuing. "I'm terrified that Rusty will try to hurt me or Cookie or that he'll go after you. I'm terrified to be alone. I'm happy that you are here, but I wish Cookie was here too. I don't want anything to happen to her because of me… And I'm terrified because my parents hate me for something I didn't do… And I'm terrified about what they will do when they find out about how I treated you… I know you forgave me… But I don't deserve it… You should hate me. Cookie should hate me. My parents should hate me. Your family and friends should hate me… Please… Tell me why you forgave me. I don't understand…"

Lincoln wrapped his arms around Cristina, pulling her into his lap. He took a breath and let out a long sigh before answering. "I forgave you because I realized that our issues were over. We both made mistakes and we paid for them. I posted that video to make up for a different mistake and while I don't regret posting it because of how the students treated me, I do however regret what happened between us. I never intended to embarrass you and you were made fun of because of me. I am truly sorry. I honestly don't blame you for hating me for that, though you did go a bit far at a few points, but I should have considered how it would affect you. Anyway, the past is in the past and we need to move on. We need to focus on more important things like catching Rusty and Boy Jordan. We need to knock some sense into your parents and most importantly, we need to make sure you get healed up. Once we get this pain out of your hand, I'll get you an ice pack… By the way, how's the foot and your head? Do they hurt too?"

Cristina let out a sigh as she pressed her cheek against Lincoln's. She had to admit, she did feel a little better having had gotten a few things off of her chest and though she still wasn't fully satisfied with Lincoln's answer, she had to admit, he had a fair point. Their issues were pretty much over. She really didn't have any hatred left for him… And she really did want to be his friend… And even though she really didn't deserve it, he wanted to be her's… She wasn't going to make the mistake of pushing him away again… He was one of the only people she felt truly safe and comfortable with… not that she was going to admit that to him…

"_Sniffle…_ My foot does hurt a little, but my head is fine. My hand is the only thing that hurts a lot… I thought that the nurse… Err… Nurse Hope, said that it wouldn't hurt this bad today, but it hurts way worse that yesterday… Err… Well, it did. It still hurts, but you helped it a lot and I think the medicine is finally working…"

Lincoln nodded, bringing his hands to rub her back. "I see. Well, how about I finish that massage, get you a couple of ice packs for your hand and foot, maybe give your foot a quick massage, them make some breakfast, okay?"

Cristina gave him a small nod, feeling her face heat up a little. She really wasn't used to his forwardness or kindness. It was odd to her that he would just offer to massage her hands or feet, not that she was going to refuse, but it was still a little odd to her… Maybe she was just over thinking it…

She closed her eyes for a moment, enjoying his company. She still felt that he was too nice to her, but she really did appreciate his company and his friendly warmth. She was going to make it up to him. She didn't know how and she didn't know when it would be, but she was going to make sure she earned his friendship. If he was going to be there for her, she was going to make damn sure that she was there for him…

"CLICK…"

"Hey Linc, we need to… Oh my gosh, that is literally the most adorable thing I have ever seen…"

Cristina's eyes burst open and her face heated up as her head snapped to look at the front door. She nearly fell off of Lincoln when she saw his oldest sister, Lori, watching them with a massive grin. Didn't she work or go to school or something?

"Whatever you think is happening, it's wrong. Lincoln was just…"

"Helping you feel better?"

Cristina gave her a mildly surprised look. Lori just continued to smile at her as she closed the door and started towards them. "I think I have a feeling I know what's going on. You were feeling upset or something and Lincoln was helping you feel better. Am I right? … Unless you were trying to…"

"Ehem. Lori, please stop teasing her. It's not exactly the best time."

Cristina felt her face heat up again as she looked to Lincoln. She did like him now, but not in the way Lori was trying to imply. "Err… It's fine Lincoln… I don't think she meant anything by it… I'll just… Get up…"

Lincoln sighed as Cristina slid off of him. She felt a bit awkward and didn't want to make things any more so. She really didn't blame Lori, as she was most likely trying to lighten the mood, but it was just poor timing.

As she sat back against the couch, she looked up at Lori, who was just standing there, looking at her, making Cristina raise a brow. She didn't really understand that one. She seemed nice and she never really had any issues with her, but she had heard Cookie mention that she was a bit… Difficult at times. She wasn't really sure what had happened between them, but last night while they were settling down for bed, Cookie had explained a few things that had happened yesterday and from the sounds of it, Lori wasn't the biggest fan of Cristina and was a bit over protective towards Lincoln… Other than that, Cookie didn't really explain much…

Hmm… Cookie. Cristina couldn't help wondering how she was doing. She seemed so tired and stressed last night and she wasn't really sure if she should have gone to school. Cristina turned to look at Lincoln, a sudden and very unpleasant thought filling her mind. "Lincoln… You don't think that Rusty or Boy Jordan or any other people will try to hurt Cookie do you? I mean… She's my best friend and one of the few people that support me."

Lincoln turned his head, giving her a serious look. "Don't worry about that. Lynn wouldn't let anything happen to her. I think she's got a bit of a soft spot for her and despite the fact that Lynn has… Well, she can be a bit scary, but she can't stand bullies. I had to practically beg Lynn not to hunt down Rusty and Boy Jordan this morning while she was at school and not to harm Paige if she finds her."

Cristina blinked at him in mild surprise. "Why? Would it really be so bad if she beat the crap out of them? I mean, I guess Paige isn't as bad as I first thought, but still, Rusty and Boy Jordan are horrid monsters."

Lincoln gave her a small nod, letting out a sigh. "I understand where you are coming from, but if we want them to get charged with what they did to me so they can't hurt you or anyone else again, then we need to be patient. I know it's hard, believe me, as soon as I found out what they did to you, I was ready to… Well, it doesn't matter what I wanted to do. All that matters is that we keep you and our friends safe, get you healed up and get Paige on our side… Man, this has been a weird week…"

Cristina nodded in agreement. It had been a weird and very stressful week and she hoped to god it would start working it's self out soon… Which she guessed was slowly starting to happen, what with Lynn looking for Paige and all… Wait…

"So… What's going to happen with Paige once Lynn finds her? I mean, I know you said you were going to make a deal with her, but then what?"

Lincoln gave her a thoughtful look before shrugging. "I don't really know. I haven't really thought that far ahead. I guess I don't have much of a choice other than to let her go about her life like normal. I mean, she did save you from getting beaten worse and in my book, that makes her a good guy. I'm not happy about what she did to me at school, but I guess I don't have much of a choice… Man, I really know how to pick my crushes… Anyway, we can figure out what to do when the time comes. Let's just focus on right now, okay? Are you hungry? I still haven't eaten yet, so I'll go make breakfast. Do you like muffins? I could make strawberry muffins… Oh, how about orange cranberry muffins? Yeah, I'll make those."

Cristina gave Lincoln a confused look at he stood from the couch and gave her a small smile before heading back for the kitchen. He didn't even wait for a reply, leaving Cristina even more confused.

"Did I say something wrong…?"

"No, you didn't. He's just under a lot of stress right now and he's confused."

Cristina turned her head as Lori sat next to her, taking Lincoln's spot and giving her a serious look. "What do you mean? He seems pretty certain about what he's doing to me."

Lori sighed, shaking her head as she took a glance at the kitchen doorway. "Oh, when it involves other people's problems or issues, he's an expert… But I'm afraid he has a lot of trouble with his own… I guess in this particular instant, that issue would be both you and Paige."

Cristina raised a brow, pulling her aching hand into her other, rubbing it. "You mean with what she did to him and then turned around and helped me?"

Lori frowned, shaking her head. "Not really, no. I mean, I guess that's part of it, but what I'm saying is that Lincoln had a crush on you and you rejected him in a very negative way. I know that he forgave you for that and that you are both working your way into a friendship, but I also know that it still hurts him. You were his first real crush and well… Since you, he's had worse and worse luck when it comes to girls. There was his friend Ronnie, that one was really hard on him because she had to move and I think there may have been something between them even if he refuses to admit it to himself… And then there was Paige. I know he really liked her. He even wrote her a couple of really sweet love letters for her, but she rejected him even harder than you did. I think that's when he stopped trying so hard. I mean, there was that small crush he had on Stella, but after she told him no, he just stopped trying all together. I'm just glad she stayed his friend and now she's his best friend, so yeah… Anyway, what I'm trying to say is, Lincoln may seem like he's always calm and well thought out, but he's still just a kid… A kid that's had his heart broken one too many times… You know, it's kind of funny in a sad sort of way. Sometimes I forget that he's my little brother and not my older brother. I know that sounds really weird and you would be right. It literally is weird. But that's just who he is. He too damn mature for his age, not to say he doesn't make mistakes, because we all know he does, he's human. But he does what he can to make up for those mistakes and he learns from them… Cristina, I know that you are trying to make up for what you did to upset him and I appreciate that a lot. I mean it, I really do… Just don't fuck it up. I know Lincoln still has feelings for you, I doubt that they are romantic in any way, but there is something. Just keep working at being friends with him, he needs it. Probably more so than you or even he himself realizes… Hmm, maybe sometime you should ask him why he posted that video with him kissing his picture of you. I think it might help you. Anyway, I've got to go call my boyfriend. If you need something, feel free to ask. You are our guest and you are hurt. Have a good morning kid and make sure Lincoln saves me one of those muffins. You have literally no idea how amazing he is with baking."

Cristina blinked a couple of times as she both watched as Lori stood from the couch and headed for the stairs, and as she processed what she had said. She never knew that Lincoln had so much trouble with dating. Just a week ago, she would have thought it was because he was a creep or something… but after spending a couple of days with him and getting to know him a little better, she came to realize that she couldn't have been more wrong.

Lincoln was a gentle man, he was a kind person and quite frankly, he deserved someone that could make him happy. He deserved someone far better than Paige or herself. Someone better than even Stella… Someone that was just as kind as Lincoln. Someone that liked him for being himself. Someone like… Cristina grinned to herself, realizing just who would be perfect for him. Someone that already liked him, even if she might not know it herself…

* * *

Paige had a miserable day. That's all there was to it. From the moment she woke, to this moment, it had been long and miserably stressful. She had been so nervous about what was going to happen, she could barely focus in school. She had to keep looking over her shoulders to make sure that she wasn't getting followed and she swore to god that she was being watched at all times since she got to school.

By the end of the day, she had to splash ice water in her face to slap herself out of her funk. If she didn't, she would have ended up detention. She had already gotten yelled at four times already, and didn't want to take any risks. She just had to make it through her last class and she would be… Well, she really wouldn't be fine, but as long as she didn't get detention, she wouldn't be late to meet with Lynn…

Paige shuddered as she thought about that morning. She had no idea what she had gotten herself into. None of this was supposed to have gone this way. She just wanted to get Lincoln off of her back, how was she supposed to know that things would have escalated this far?

…

It didn't matter now. She just had to play it safe and meet with Lynn and Cookie. She had no idea what to expect and it was making her nervous… There is no way today could possibly get any worse…

"RING…"

"_Sigh…"_

Paige stood up straight and reached for a couple of paper towels, using them to dry her face before throwing them away and turning to head out of the bathroom. She couldn't wait for this day to be over with…

She pressed her hand against the door, pushing it open as she stepped into the hall. She just had to go to her next class, sit through it, take notes and leave. Then she could focus on not getting the crap beaten out of her. Lynn did say she wasn't going to hurt her, but she wasn't sure if she should trust her. After all, everyone knew that Lynn Loud was a ruthless jock and that she…

"Ouph…"

Paige walked into someone, making both her and them fall to the ground. After taking a second to rub the pain from her butt, she looked up… Crap…

Sitting on the ground, looking rather annoyed, was one of the people she wanted to see the least. Frankly, at this point, she would rather face Lynn or Cookie… Hell, she would rather face all of Lincoln's sisters and Lincoln himself than this jerk…

"Would you watch where you are going…? Oh, it's you."

Paige grit her teeth as she locked eyes with Rusty. She had managed to avoid him all day, and yet, just when she thought she was in the clear, here he was. Why couldn't he just disappear? This whole mess was his fault anyway.

Paige didn't respond to Rusty, making him roll his eyes. Instead, she just pulled herself to her feet and dusted herself off. She wasn't interested in anything that involved him. Someone else would probably get hurt and she wanted nothing to do with it. Never again… When she closed her eyes she could still see Cristina's bloody, broken body laying in the grass… She doubted she would be able to sleep right ever again…

She just started to move past him, ignoring his snort of annoyance. She had to admit, it felt pretty damn good. If she hated Lincoln… Well, she hated this jackass a million times more…

"Paige, we need to talk."

Nope, not happening. She just kept walking. She wasn't interested. She was going to make the last hour of her day normal. It was the very least she deserved. Nothing was going to get in the way of it. Nope, nothing. Not Lincoln, not his sister, not Cristina, not Cookie and most certainly not this jackass.

"Paige, stop walking away from me."

Still she ignored him. She was starting to get irritated. Get the massage would yah? She wasn't going to talk to him, no matter what he… EXCUSUE YOU?

Paige whipped around as soon as she felt Rusty grab the back of her shirt, snapping her bra. She clenched her fist as hard as she could and swung at him… She missed as he ducked, obviously having been ready for her. "WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU? CAN'T YOU JUST LEAVE ME ALONE? FOR FUCKS SAKE, GET THE MESSAGE YOU FREAK! I'M NOT INTERESTED IN TALKING TO YOU. FUCK OFF!"

Paige tried to swing at him again, stepping forward to add more force, but Rusty put his foot forward, tripping her. "Calm down you crazy bitch. We need to talk about what happened with Cristina."

Paige landed hard, feeling slight pain as she landed on her hands and knees. She ignored it. She was pissed. She tried to jump to her feet, but Rusty kicked his foot into her butt, knocking her onto her face. That was it… That was the last straw. Her day had been horrid and then this ass thinks he can just knock her around? No, no more…

Paige rolled over, kicking her foot out, feeling satisfied when it came into contact with Rusty's shin, making him fall to the ground. "Leave me alone you jerk. Why should I talk to you about Cristina? You hurt her really bad. I know what the police said and they were wrong. Those two morons that took the fall, they weren't responsible. No, that was you. You hurt Cristina. You told everyone that is was her and they believed you… But no more. This ends now. I'm going to make sure you rue the day you…"

"BAM…"

Paige flew backwards, hitting the ground with an audible thud. Pain filled her face and she had to blink several times before her vision cleared enough to see the enraged Rusty diving at her. At that point it was too late. He pounced on her, grabbed her by the shirt and gave her what would be the equivalence of a snarl.

"MY FAULT? This is just as much your fault as it is mine. You dare put the blame on me? How about we talk about what you did? You were the one that did the most damage to Lincoln. Sure I was the one that came up with the idea, but it was you that made my plan better. You deleted his records. You sent the letters. You sent the glitter bomb. It was you that made me sent you that video of you forcing yourself on Cristina. If anyone is at fault for what happened to her, it's you. Cristina got hurt because you are in love with her."

At that, Paige felt something inside of her crack and just like that she smashed her head into Rusty's, feeling his nose crunch against her forehead. Blood flowed from it as he screamed out, grabbing his nose with one hand. She expected him to just let her go, but he didn't. He just smashed his fist into her face, hitting the same eye for the seconds time… The same eye she got soap in that morning…

Paige grabbed her face, holding her hand over her eye. She attempted to use her other hand to punch him back, but she only hit air. She looked up in surprise when she felt his hand slid into her pocket, grabbing at her phone.

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?"

Rusty jumped off of Paige, taking the phone with him. Both her and Paige looked up to see an angry looking Lynn and Cookie, along with a couple of other familiar looking girls approaching. Seeing them, Rusty looked to Paige, giving her a sneer. "This is your fault. All of it. If they find out what's on this phone, my plans are ruined… But if they can't get into your phone, then yours are ruined."

With that said, he raised his hand and smashed Paige's phone on the ground, making her flinch as shards of glass bounced up to her exposed ankles. As soon as the phone hit the ground, he gave it a couple of stomps, then took off, not sticking around as Lynn, along with the other girls ran up to the dazed Paige.

She just stared down at her phone, frowning. What a waste of a perfectly nice phone…

"Uh… Hey, kid you okay?"

Paige slowly turned her head, having to blink a couple of times to clear her vision. Rusty punched a lot harder that she had expected… She looked up at Lynn, ignoring the other girls for the time being.

"That was what you wanted, right?"

Lynn's eyes filled with a mixture of confusion and mild worry. "What are you talking about? Are you okay? Your eye looks super messed up. Why don't you let me take you to the nurse?"

Paige let out a sigh, looking back down at her phone. She raised her hand, pointing at it. "The phone. You asked me to bring my phone with me when I came to our meeting… Am I right in assuming that what you really wanted was the video on it?"

Lynn sighed, moving her hands up to grab Paige's head, looking at her face. "Forget that. It's ruined, nothing we can do. Are you okay? Can you see out of your eye? How many fingers am I holding up?"

Paige blinked a couple of times. She couldn't even feel the pain any more. Rusty had hurt her... He destroyed her phone… He destroyed the video… Or at least that's what he thought… A smile slowly started to form on Paige's face. It was over. Rusty would leave her alone. There was nothing more that he wanted from her… It was finally over.

"Uh, Paige, are you okay?"

Paige's eyes focused on Cookie. She looked slightly weirded out and Paige had to force her smile away as she answered, looking at all of the girls. "Yes. I'm perfectly fine. I've actually never felt better in my life. Rusty destroyed me phone… and now he's going to leave me alone… All because he thinks the video is destroyed…"

Lynn raised a brow, giving her a curious look. "Thinks? What do you mean, he thinks? What the hell are you going on about?"

Paige's smile returned. It was like a massive weight had been removed from her shoulders. She didn't care that she was going to have a nasty black eye. She didn't care that Rusty knew her feelings about Cristina. She didn't even care that Lynn and her friends were probably going to beat her… Because she was free…

"The video… Rusty is a lot of things. He's a perv, a jerk, a bully… But most of all, he's the dumbest moron in the world. His phone had the original and I had him sent it to me… He thinks the video is gone for good… Ha… Ha ha ha… But he's wrong… Just like anything on the internet, I can get it back… Rusty is screwed and he doesn't even know it yet…"

* * *

**Well, that escalated quickly. Sorry for taking so long to update the story. There have been a few, unforeseen incidents that happened in my life and a lot of things have changed. The biggest being that I had to move back home.**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. I'm going to try to post the next much sooner, but I can't guaranty anything, so please, be patient. Tell me what you thought of this chapter and as always, have a good one.**


	10. Important Autors Note Please Read

I don't think I can write fanfiction anymore.

I really enjoyed writing and I love the stories I started, but some of you are miserable bastards.

Most of you are great and supportive. But there is a rather large amount of people that wont stop PMing me, asking me to write them inappropriate things involving minors or people asking me to change my story to fit what they want. There are other reasons of course, but these are among the most prevalent.

The biggest problem, is that they have ruined The Loud House for me.

I don't want to stop writing, as I have put a lot of work into my stories, but I can't really write about something I have started to dislike. I love The Loud House as a show, but the fandom isn't really something I feel like I can be apart of anymore. Not to mention the shear amount of NSFW content there is and the amount that people want me to make.

The amount of people that I have had to block on my twitter alone is ridiculous.

To those of you who have done nothing wrong, I am truly sorry. I know I said I would finish my stories, but I just can't be apart of something I don't support. And if I do not enjoy something, I can not focus my attention into it. You all deserve better. You deserve a good story. At this time, I don't think I can deliver my best work. I truly hope, perhaps in the future, I can come back to my stories and finish them. I suppose, for now at least, this is Goodbye.

Thank you for your time and I truly am sorry.

-Raven MacBeth


End file.
